


Home

by Necey



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Demon AU, Fae AU would be more accurate, M/M, Power Imbalance, but not traditional demons, hhbb, hxhbb, nothing horrid though
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2019-09-23
Packaged: 2020-02-27 13:44:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 48,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18740233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Necey/pseuds/Necey
Summary: When Leorio moves into a new house, the last thing he was expecting was to find a demon chained up in the basement. Being the kindhearted and apparently stupid man he is, he frees the demon, Kurapika, and nurses him back to health. Now Kurapika won't leave his house and Leorio's pretty sure Kurapika's hunting people for their eyes. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, and his living room is destroyed in the process, he has to deal with the demon's friends coming and going.How did his house become a haven for demons? And how the hell did he wind up adopting three dragon assassin kids?





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, here's my monster baby. I never expected to write quite this much for this story, and I'm still writing. Here's hoping I get finished with it all soon so I can play some Final Fantasy full time.
> 
> A note on the demon thing, they're technically fae, or magical creatures, but Leorio doesn't know that. I'm sorry for all of you who poked your head in expecting to get a pure demon AU. Maybe next time...
> 
> Also please feel free to point out errors or give constructive criticism, I wanna learn from this!

"I already told you how I got this place Gon," Leorio said as he squinted through the rain plastering the windshield. It was a shitty day to move, the sky almost black as night and the rain coming down in sheets. The roar of water did nothing to mask the rumble of thunder.

None of this deterred his little cousin. Gon was practically bouncing in his seat, "You didn't tell Killua." He pointed to his weird friend who looked up from where he was peering out the window. The faint glow of the dashboard lights made him look like a ghost with how pale he was.

"No, because you told him," Leorio said patiently, trying to read a street sign through the deluge.

Killua huffed, "Yeah, he told me you got it from a car crash, which isn't comforting right now."

"Oh shut up, I'm not the one who crashed. It was a car in front of me that got T-boned in an intersection. I helped save the family and the dad gave me this house because rich people are insane." He could remember the wreck vividly. The sickening crunch of impact, the way the car spun out of control, the smell of blood and a little girl's weakly beating pulse-

"Old man, you just missed the road." Killua's voice snapped him back to reality and Leorio cursed as he awkwardly turned the U-Haul around. This route would take some getting used to, all back roads and patches of trees, but he couldn't complain about the location. It was within reasonable driving distance to the college of his choice, and now that he didn't have to pay rent he could actually go to that college.

"That guy wasn't insane," Gon said once Leorio stopped griping and was back on the right road. "You saved his family, he wanted to thank you."

"He could have thanked like a normal person, with some cash or something. He gave me a mini mansion Gon. This place is huge." Five bedrooms, five and a half baths between two buildings plus eight acres? Leorio didn't even want to imagine how much his new place cost.

"Are you complaining about this?" Killua asked as he propped his elbow against the window and held his head in his hand to give Leorio an incredulous look.

"No." Leorio purposely hit a hole so Killua's elbow slipped off the door and he almost hit his head on the window. Hiding his smile, he continued, "I'm just saying this is a bit much. If the guy didn't offer to pay utilities and land taxes there's no way I could afford this."

Gon laughed as Killua reached over him to pinch Leorio, "How long is he paying for everything?"

Leorio swatted at the offending fingers but had to take the pinch to pull the truck back into the right lane. "Ow, what? Oh, he didn't say but he implied that this is a lifetime thing. Something about a life debt and keeping an old building open." Speaking of, there it was at the end of a long driveway. Trees surrounded the land on all sides, keeping the property nice and secluded from the outside world. With how charming the buildings looked, it was like something out of a picture book.

Gon and Killua leaned forward in their seats to try and get a better look through the rain. "Wow," Gon said, "it's really big."

"Did you think I was lying?" Leorio asked, backing up to the front porch of the main building. "When I said mini mansion I meant it. One of you get out and tell me how close I'm getting."

Gon tried to crawl over Killua to get out but Killua wasn't budging. "There's no garage?"

"Nope. This used to be a be a bed and breakfast so there's nothing like that. Now get out and help me back up, you're not going to melt."

Gon laughed and managed to reach behind Killua to open the door, almost shoving him out in the process. Killua yelped, "Gon! Holy shit that's cold!"

"Language!" Leorio called out but the door slammed shut before he could even finish the word. It didn't much matter, Killua was going to do what Killua wanted.

Leorio turned his attention to the side mirror where he could barely see Gon gesturing to him to come back. Killua said something to Gon to make him laugh and Leorio would bet he was telling Gon to make him back into the porch. Bless his cousin though, there was no crunch or bump when Gon gestured to him to stop. Leorio shut the truck off and took a deep breath before jumping out into the storm and holy shit that was cold! It took no time to get under the porch but he still felt soaked.

"Picked a great day to move didn't I?" Leorio grumbled as he dug for his keys.

"Just wait until tomorrow to unpack," Gon said, trying to peer into the window. He was back to bouncing in place.

Killua leaned a bit out from under the porch to look up at the sky, "It's going to get worse tomorrow, better do it today and get it over with."

"Thank you weatherman, but you're right." Leorio opened the door and stood back to let Gon dart in first. Killua followed in a much more relaxed pace. The entrance foyer was a small hallway ending in a staircase and a small cubby room. Off to the left was a library and to the right was the main living area.

"This living room is huge! Is this TV yours now? And all this furniture?" Gon called out, already inspecting everything in reach.

"Whoa, did he seriously give you all this?" Killua asked from the entrance to the fully stocked library.

It had surprised Leorio too the first time he toured the place. "Yeah, everything that's here is mine now. Like I said, rich people are insane." Leorio took the umbrella stand and propped the front door open with it. "Look around later, help me unpack first."

Two groans met his ears but both of them came out to help. Killua grabbed a couple of umbrellas and offered to hold them while Gon and Leorio moved the boxes. It would go faster with all three of them unpacking, but Leorio couldn't say no to some cover from the cold waterfall coming from the sky. It didn't take long to empty the U-Haul since he didn't own much stuff in the first place. Leorio felt like a drowned rat as he sat the last soggy box down, Killua's umbrellas only doing so much to fend off the rain.

Leorio grabbed the back of Gon's shirt as Gon went to rush off, "Dry off first before you explore." Leorio rummaged around in the boxes for a towel.

The moment Gon was even remotely dry, he took off through the living room into the dining room. Killua tossed his damp towel at Leorio and ran after Gon, "Wait up!"

Leorio couldn't help but smile as he listened to them chatter on about the stuff they found. He'd had reservations about Killua at first, a wild child coming out of nowhere to befriend his little cousin? Who wouldn't have reservations? But Gon loved his friend and that was all Leorio needed to give the boy a chance. He was glad he had, Killua was a good kid. Bratty and too mischievous for Leorio's liking, but a good kid nonetheless. There were still some red flags though, the way he never mentioned his family or home life, and some of the things he said were a bit more morbid than one would expect.

"You've got two ovens!" Gon yelled from the kitchen and Leorio couldn't help but laugh. Two ovens, a huge fridge, and top of the line appliances everywhere. He couldn't help but feel that this was all too good to be true, that there'd be some sort of secret that ruins the fantasy.

Leorio set about opening boxes to sort through his stuff, the worst part of any move. Gon and Killua came running past him to inspect the library and Leorio was just waiting for the yelling when they found the game room.

"You have an arcade in your house!" Killua called out, the sounds of a game already starting up. Giving up on the boxes for now, Leorio went through the small hallway connecting the living room to the game room. A wall of old arcade cabinets, a pool table, a jukebox, and two TVs in the corners, it was every guy's dream room.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Leorio said, leaning his arm against the cabinet that Killua had started up. "We can have a tournament later so I can kick both your asses in Burger Time."

Killua laughed, "Bring it, I can beat you with my eyes closed old man." Leorio lunged for Killua but the brat deftly avoided him and went running, Gon hot on his heels. He could hear their laughter over the pounding of their feet as they ran up the stairs.

Why did everyone insist on calling him old? He was only twenty-one for christ's sake. Must be his rugged good looks and sharp fashion sense. Leorio went back to sorting through his boxes, listening to the sound of the kids’ muffled footsteps and chatter. He was going to miss that once they went back to Mito's. This house would be too quiet with only him in it. The other building was where the master bedroom was so he might stay over there.

Leorio had sorted most of his boxes by time Gon and Killua came back downstairs. Gon went into the game room while Killua came over to see what Leorio was doing. "What are you going to do with four full sized rooms?"

"No clue, maybe turn one into a storage room or something." Probably just keep them closed and never go upstairs. He supposed he could open the place up as a bed and breakfast again, but then he'd have to deal with people and he'd like to avoid that.

Killua was still standing there when Leorio finished moving boxes around. He was staring off into the distance, hands in his pockets and his shoulders hunched. "Hey, you okay?" Leorio asked, brows drawing together.

Killua looked over. "Does this house feel weird to you?"

"Not really," Leorio said. Big and quiet yes, but weird no.

"Something about this place just seems off to me," Killua mumbled, looking toward the dining room but not really seeing it. Leorio couldn't help but look to see if there was something there, but there wasn't.

"Off like how?" he asked, not liking how serious Killua was acting.

"Like… there's a presence here. Something… dangerous." Killua looked down at the floor and hunched his shoulders again.

Leorio went quiet, as if he could hear the presence Killua was talking about. All he could hear was the roar of rain and the old house creaking in the wind. Now that he mentioned it though, the house was kind of creepy. He had thought this offer was too good to be true, maybe it was because someone was murdered here or it was… The lights flickered.

"I think this place is haunted," Killua said in a creepy voice. There was a small flash and a horrendous crash split the night as the lights went out. Leorio jumped and yelled, his brain taking a moment to register it as thunder. The lights came back on and Killua was laughing his ass off.

"You should have seen your face! Gon! He about pissed himself." Killua turned to Gon who had just walked in.

"It was just thunder Leorio," Gon teased.

"Oh shut up, I know that," Leorio snatched a couple of pillows off the couch and tossed them at the brats. Gon caught his but Killua was too busy laughing and got a pillow to the face. Gon started laughing so Killua hit him with the offending pillow and before Leorio knew what he'd started they were having an impromptu pillow fight.

Leorio went easy on them, at least until they made it clear they weren't going to hold back. He felt a bit bad hitting a kid that hard with a pillow but damn it, they weren't playing fair! Killua was near impossible to hit, vaulting over the couch and boxes to get out of the way and Gon tanked through the hits to retaliate. By the time they collapsed, breathless and laughing, there were two less pillows and a good bit of stuffing floating to the floor.

When he caught his breath, Gon asked, "What were you two talking about? I heard something about a haunting?"

"Killua thinks this place is haunted and I think he's full of shit."

"Ha, you didn't think that when I was saying it. God you were so serious, as if a ghost would come out at any moment." Killua laughed and this time caught the pillow Leorio threw at him.

Gon's eyes lit up and he leaned forward to grip his ankles. "It would be so cool if this place was haunted! We could go on a ghost hunt and do a séance and-"

"Nope, no, nuh uh, not doing that," Leorio cut him off. "No ghost stuff in this house. //I'm the one who has to live here and I don't want an annoyed spirit running around."

"Do you actually believe in ghosts?" Killua grinned at him.

"No but I also don't believe in pushing my luck against things I don't understand."

"It's not ghosts you have to worry about, those don't exist." The way he said "those" was not comfortable, as if there were something else that he had to worry about. Leorio opened his mouth to ask what he meant but Gon spoke first.

"Don't worry, if this building is haunted you can just live in the other one."

"I just might, that's where the master bedroom is," Leorio pointed his thumb behind him to the door leading to the other building.

Gon hopped up and walked over to the window to try and see the other building through the rain.

"Can we go look in it? We can check for ghosts for you." He and Killua snickered.

"Sure, whatever." Leorio dug the keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Gon. "Maybe you'll both get eaten by a demon and save me some trouble."

Killua snorted at that and Gon laughed at him as they headed outside. There was an awning but with how hard it was raining they'd probably still get wet. Served them right, scaring him like that. As if the place was haunted, there were no such things as ghosts. Right?

The lights flickered as another peal of thunder rang out and once again Leorio jumped. The old house creaked and popped with the wind and now that Killua had mentioned it, it did feel decidedly creepy. Leorio shook his head, berating himself for letting that little shit mess with him. He took a deep breath and started sweeping up the stuffing mess. Once done with that, he sorted through his books, separating the ones he was going to leave in the library verses the ones he wanted in his room. As he headed into the library with a box, there was a creak as if someone was walking behind him. He whipped around, almost flinging the box out of his hands, but nothing was there. It was the wind, just the wind. He couldn't shake the feeling of being watched as he put books on the shelves, but no matter how fast or slow he turned there was never anything there.

He should probably go check on the kids, it'd been awhile hadn't it? Yeah, he was going to head over there and make sure they hadn't broken anything yet. As he walked calmly towards the door to the garden separating the two buildings, the lights flickered and hummed ominously. He hurried through the door and didn't even care that he was getting wet.

This building was for the bed and breakfast owners and they had renovated it as a sort of small apartment. A living room, small kitchenette, and a huge master suite. The boys were in the living room pouring over a pile of game cases they'd pulled out of somewhere.

Killua looked up and grinned, "Told you he'd come running."

"Ha ha," Leorio said flatly, "I came over to make sure you two didn't get into any trouble. Where did you find all these?" Leorio walked over and picked up the case to one of the older highly popular shooting games. Looking at the array of titles set out on the coffee table he could see games ranging from shooters and fighters to puzzles and pokemon.

"That cabinet is full of games and their systems. And you own all of it now," Gon said, pointing to a large cabinet that had escaped Leorio's notice the first time around. He was sure as hell noticing it now.

"Holy shit, that has to be a mistake. I should call that guy and tell him." Leorio patted himself down for his phone only to remember he'd left it in the other building.

"What!? Come on, he said everything here was yours right? Just take it," Killua said.

"No, because if he didn't mean to give it to me it would be stealing."

"But he did give it to you, and so long as you don't sell it or break it he can come by and get it whenever he wants. You should just keep it and not worry," Gon said, in one of his moments of simple wisdom.

Leorio struggled to find a flaw in that plan and gave up on it pretty quickly. "Okay yeah, sounds good. So what kind of loot did I score?"

There was at least a thousand dollars in that cabinet, probably much more but Leorio didn't know enough about video games to say for certain. Killua dug out a fighting game and challenged them to a tournament. Leorio happily agreed, ready to show Killua who was boss.

Killua was boss.

Leorio couldn't believe this kid, how was he so good? Leorio had expected to lose once or twice as he got used to the game, but not every fucking time. He could beat Gon about fifty-fifty but Killua? Neither of them could touch him. The brat had to have superhuman reflexes, that's all there was to it.

They played games for hours. When one would get boring there was always another to try. Killua remained the undisputed champion of anything that required speed and reflexes, and while that annoyed the hell out of Leorio, Gon had nothing but praise for his friend. Half the time Leorio would bow out so Killua could teach Gon some of the tricks he was using.

The rest of the weekend was largely the same, a lot of games and not a lot of unpacking. When the lights went out, which they did on and off all weekend, they played shadow tag or board games. Somehow Killua managed to rope them into a scary story contest and by the end of it they were all jumping at the stupidest things. The kids wound up in Leorio's bed that night.

By time Sunday rolled around Leorio kind of wanted them to stay, but knew they needed to head back home. Gon was disappointed that he hadn't been able to explore the grounds, but Leorio promised to come get him when the weather was better and to let him bring his huge bear of a dog.

As Leorio waved goodbye to the kids that Sunday and started the long drive back to his new home, he couldn't help but feel lonely. That large house was going to feel empty without two hyper boys running around.


	2. Chapter Two

It had only been a week since he'd moved in, but Leorio found himself loving his creepy old house. Sure, the sheer size made it lonely at times. The dining room table was always empty, most of the appliances stood unused, sounds echoed in the cavernous rooms. It made him miss that first weekend with Gon and Killua when the house was full of life.

Still, the place had more than enough charm to make up for the loneliness. The library had a window seat that was perfect for reading in. The cushions were soft enough to melt into and the way the sun shone through the window made it easy to drift off into a good book. Or a good nap as it were, more often than not. The garden though, that was the prime spot. All the benefits of the window seat but with the added bonus of the gentle breeze keeping him cool. The wind through the leaves broke up the oppressive silence from the house and the flowers smelled like spring. He supposed he'd have to learn how to garden to keep the place nice and neat, either that or he'd have to hire someone. For the first time in his life that was actually an option.  
  
He had called the insane rich guy about all the stuff left in the house and the guy laughed at his concern. He told Leorio in no uncertain terms that anything found in the house was his to keep and Leorio wasn't the type to say no to an offer like that. Especially since he kept discovering new things every day. There was a top of the line laptop in one room, a tablet in another, more video games and consoles scattered about, and not to mention the boxes of jewelry and sleek TVs in every room. If he sold even half of this stuff he'd have a mini fortune.  
  
He did sell quite a bit of it, but most of that money went straight to college and textbooks. He had missed the signups for the winter term so he had some time to prepare for summer. He couldn't believe he was going to be a college student, much less a med student. If his mother were still here she'd be crying and hugging him so hard his back would crack. It was still a long road ahead of him, but he had a clear goal. Become like the insane rich guy that gave him this house. So rich that he could change someone's life and think nothing about it, giving pro bono surgeries to people who needed them.  
  
He had taken to exploring a new room every day and today was the pantry. He didn't expect to find much in the poorly-lit dusty room, not like they kept this place stocked with food. Cans and supplies lined the shelves, things that wouldn't spoil, and the boxes on the floor seemed to be more of the same. He coughed and waved a hand in front of his face as he shoved a box aside. Underneath it was a wooden trapdoor with dull gold hinges and handle. He automatically reached to open it before realizing that's how horror movies started. A forgotten trap door in an old house? Who knew what was down there. His mind went back to Killua and how serious he was when he said he felt a dangerous presence. And if there really was one lurking about? It would be down this trap door.  
  
Feeling a little silly, Leorio went into the kitchen and grabbed a big butcher knife, as if that would help him against anything paranormal. Still, he'd always felt better with a knife on him, ever since he was a kid on the streets. With a deep breath, Leorio pulled open the trap door and stepped back. When nothing came crawling out at him, he turned on the flashlight on his phone and slowly headed down the stairs. To the left of him was open and he could see shelves and glints of light bouncing back at him like a forest of eyes. Swallowing hard, he reached for a light switch at the bottom of the stairs out of habit and was surprised to find one. As the lights came on his face split into a grin.  
  
"Score!" It was a wine cellar, a fully stocked wine cellar. Now he felt doubly silly for bringing a knife down here. As he walked toward the nearest rack, he tripped over a loose cobblestone and almost hit the floor. Once he got his balance back he glared at the offending rock and nudged it back into place. Turning his attention back to his new wine collection, he was delighted to see dust and spider webs covering the bottles. He knew nothing about wine but that meant it was good, right? This time he definitely wasn't calling the insane rich guy, this was all his now.  
  
There were all kinds of brands and vintages, none of which he knew anything about but it all looked rather fancy. As he crossed the aisle to look at the other rack, he tripped over the same cobblestone. Making a noise of frustration, he put it back in place and mashed it down so it would stay. He took his time looking over everything. How much could he get if he sold it all? Did he even want to sell it? He basically had a lifetime supply of alcohol in his basement. Picking out a bottle to test, he turned to the stairs only to trip over the loose cobblestone again.  
  
He growled and shoved it down with more force this time. As he turned to leave, it popped back up as if to spite him. He knew he should just leave it, that it wasn't worth the effort, but he tried once again. This time he stomped hard and held it down for a moment. He didn't even manage to step back before it popped up again.  
  
"You motherfucker!" he yelled as he stomped it over and over again as hard as he could. His foot went through the floor with a crack and he pitched forward to land hard on his knees. Looking back through the cloud of dust, he saw there was now a good sized hole in the floor.  
  
He picked himself up, grateful that he hadn't dropped his wine bottle, and peered down into the hole. It was only an inch or so deep with dark wood lining the bottom and it looked like there was a hinge on the side. Knowing better, Leorio sat his wine down and pulled up the rest of the cobblestones over the door. Because that's what it was, another trap door, much older looking than the one leading down here. A chill ran through him as he looked over the old wood. This door wasn't hidden on accident like the wine cellar, no, someone went through some trouble to cover this one up. He didn't want to know why.  
  
Leorio scraped all the cobbles back into the hole and grabbed his wine as he headed back up the stairs. He got halfway before he stopped and looked back. Could he really just leave it? Go to bed tonight without knowing what was down there? No, no he couldn't. He set his bottle down again and went back to clear the cobbles away. Now he didn't feel so silly holding the butcher knife as he pulled open the heavy door. It groaned like a dying beast as it opened, which did nothing to help his nerves. The stairway descended far enough that his phone couldn't penetrate the inky blackness. Steeling himself, he headed down with the knife at the ready.  
  
The trip down was stifling, both sides enclosed by rough stone walls. The air tasted stale and each step brought up a puff of dust from under his feet. It was almost a relief to reach the bottom, until he saw the faint glow at the end of the hallway. Sweat rolled down the back of his neck, at odds with the cool air. This was the part in every horror movie where people yelled at the dumbass on the screen about to get themselves killed. He did not want to be that dumbass, but what choice did he have? Head back up and put something very heavy on the door and hope nothing came crawling up out of the depths? If he didn't see this through he'd never be able to sleep, and if he did see it through he may never sleep again.

Leorio shut the flashlight on his phone off, emphasizing the glow in the darkness. Was it candlelight? God it was candlelight, wasn't it? The insane rich guy that gave him this house was sacrificing him to whatever was down here. If he were smart, he'd turn around, leave the house, and never come back.  
  
He crept down the hallway with his knife at the ready. If they wanted a sacrifice it would be them, not him. There was no noise though, no movement other than the slight flicker of the light. The closer he got the more apparent it was that there was no one there. As he stepped into the room, his attention was immediately drawn to the source of the light. It was an altar. Not a creepy sacrifice people to altar, but more of a reverent worshiping one. The floor and nooks in the wall were full of candles, lending the whole altar a kind of cozy and personal warmth. Flowers, long dead, covered every other surface. The centerpiece of the altar was several cylinders and above those on a separate tier were a row of religious-like figures and symbols, none of which he recognized.  
  
There was a door on the far side of the room and he started toward it only to freeze as he caught sight of what was to the right of him. It was a spider web of chains, the silver links glittering in the shifting light. In the center, strung up like prey, was a person. Once Leorio's heart started beating again, he realized it was a statue. The male figure was naked, its arms crossed over its chest and its head bowed. Long pale hair slipped past its shoulders to hang almost to its knees. He thought it must have been some sort of demon, it had a pair of wings pinned tight to its back. Its feet were clawed and it looked like it had a long tail hanging down. All it was missing were the horns. Leorio found it disturbing to look at, not only because of how lifelike it was. The figure looked malnourished, its hip bones showing and it's cheeks sunken, but it was the burns that disturbed him the most. Everywhere a chain touched skin, a burn had been carved and they looked very real.  
  
Leorio took a step back from the creepy statue before turning his attention back to the door. Someone had been down here to light those candles, and he was determined to know who it was. The door was made of the same heavy wood as the trap door, and it too groaned when opened. Leorio looked back at the statue, half expecting the head to raise up at the noise, but it remained motionless. With a sigh of relief, Leorio got his phone out and headed down the hallway.  
  
Immediately it was clear that no one had come this way in a very long time. There were no footprints in the thick dust and there were several spider webs stretched across the hallway. Which meant someone was coming through his house, but that made no sense either. That cobble hadn't been easy to rip up, there was no way someone could have made that mess and covered it up without him knowing. The rich guy couldn't have left them burning either, they would have definitely melted to stubs by now.  
  
Leorio went ahead and followed the hallway to see where it ended, hoping it wasn't the basement of some serial killer. He found stairs that led up to another trap door, this one with roots and vines clinging to the edges. Leorio tried to open it but no matter how hard he pushed or pulled it wouldn't budge. Dirt fell from the cracks as he tried, making him cough and sputter. At least he knew no one had a secret way to get into his house. He headed back to the altar room, brushing dirt out of his hair. He half expected to find the statue missing or moved but thank the lord it was still how he left it.  
  
He turned his attention to the altar. It was beautiful, in a sad, forgotten sort of way. He could tell whoever set it up cared deeply about these cylinders. There was something floating in each of them but the layer of dust made it hard to make out. Marbles? Something round at least. It didn't make sense, for someone to come down here and light these candles but not clean off the altar. Leorio reached forward and wiped the dust off a cylinder only to freeze, his stomach dropping not just because of the disembodied eyes staring out at him. Something else was watching him and he felt like a deer in the headlights. No, like a rabbit in a wolf's mouth waiting for the bite.  
  
He wasn't breathing, didn't dare move as the oppressive presence had his mind screaming at him to run. The seconds went on and still no teeth met the back of his neck, no claws sank into his skin. Swallowing hard, Leorio slowly straightened up, grip tightening on his butcher knife. When nothing moved, not even a shift in the air, he turned around and saw red.  
  
Red, vivid, brilliant eyes that seemed to have their own internal glow. All he could see were those eyes, their slit pupils boring into him and pinning him in place. The statue wasn't a statue, it was every bit alive as it looked and it was glaring murder at Leorio. He had never felt like this, the sheer panic and desire to run warring against his instinct to not make any sudden movement. After another eternity, he took a terribly slow step toward the door, the demon tracked his every movement. Once Leorio was halfway to the door, the demon closed his eyes and let his head fall forward again. With that overwhelming gaze off of him, Leorio bolted and didn't stop until he was back in the wine cellar.  
  
What the fuck was that? Why the hell was it under this house? Who could have tied up such a terrifying creature? A million questions ran through his mind, faster than he could process them. He half wanted to call the insane rich guy but if this was some sort of weird torture cell or sacrifice chamber or whatever, he definitely didn't want to let on that he knew about it.  
  
There was nothing stopping him from covering up the trap door and never thinking about this again. That demon obviously couldn't move, otherwise Leorio would already be dead. It would be the smart thing to do, let that thing starve down there. He couldn't though. There was no way he'd let it suffer like that, not in good conscience. He couldn't let it go free either though, there had to be a reason someone tied it up. He would just have to go down and slit its throat, stop its suffering and get rid of his problem all in one slice.  
  
Leorio took a deep breath and headed back to the altar room, peeking around the corner to look at the demon. He was back to how he was before, head bowed almost as if he were sleeping. Other than the tail and wings, he looked perfectly human. Maybe he wasn't a demon at all, but it was hard to think of anything else that would be strung up and tortured in front of a holy altar.  
  
What could he have done to deserve this punishment? If all those cylinders were filled with eyeballs, that could be it. The eyes had looked a bit like the demon's, that vivid red color that was both beautiful and terrifying. Had this demon been hunting down others of its kind? Or was he the victim here?  
  
Leorio crept closer and waved a hand in front of the demon's face, jerking back at the ready in case he tried something. There was no movement. Had he passed out? Leorio wouldn't doubt it, with those burns and how weak he looked. Standing this close, Leorio expected heat to be coming off the chains, but it was as cool as the rest of the room. He reached out and very carefully touched one but it was as cold as a chain should be. As he looked back at the demon he froze, not expecting him to be looking over out of the corner of his eye.  
  
The demon hadn't even picked up his head, his golden eyes looked so tired and wary it made Leorio's heart squeeze. Wait, golden? Was the red from before just his mind playing tricks on him? Before he could take a closer look, the demon closed his eyes, almost as if he were too tired to keep them open. Leorio wet his lips and opened his mouth to say something, but had to clear his throat before anything would come out.  
  
"Hello?" Leorio grimaced but if the demon thought he was an idiot, he didn't show it. Leorio tried again. "Can you hear me? Can you even understand English?" No response. Feeling brave, Leorio poked one of the chains. When there was no reaction to that, he walked over to the altar and brushed dust off a different cylinder. This one had red eyes in it too, but more importantly that horrible terrifying feeling of a predator watching him was back. The demon was glaring at him through his eyelashes, barely lifting his head as if he had spent all his energy on the first time. His eyes were still golden.  
  
"I'm not going to mess with these, I just… I guess I just want to know what's going on here?" Leorio walked back toward the demon, who looked like he was about to pass out. Scratch that, his eyes fluttered close and his head slumped forward, long hair gently swaying with the movement.  
  
What on earth was he going to do? Leorio couldn't let him stay down here to suffer, couldn't kill him in cold blood after he looked at him like that, so what? Break him free and hope he didn't go on a killing spree? As the demon was right now he couldn't kill a dog much less a human armed with a butcher's knife. It would take a while for him to recover, plenty of time to see if he was dangerous and kill him if needed.  
  
Mind made up, Leorio headed upstairs to find some bolt cutters. The whole trip he debated with himself if he was doing the right thing. Even as he prepared to cut the first chain he wasn't sure. His mother always did say his kind heart would get him killed… Well, if he was going to be the stereotypical horror movie dumbass, he was going to do it right. He steeled his resolve and cut through the chain.  
  
The demon stirred, his brows drawing together and mouth pulling down as he cracked an eye open to look at Leorio. Leorio shrugged and snipped the next chain, talking as he worked. "I don't know what I'm doing either, probably something stupid. Guess I'm just suicidal today, exploring a hidden basement, freeing something very obviously not supposed to be free, but… I can't just let you starve and I can't sleep knowing you're down here suffering. And who knows? Maybe you don't deserve-"  
  
Leorio jerked back as the demon hissed, his jaw clenched and his eyes screwed shut. One of the chains Leorio had cut loose was softly clinking against the demon's thigh and there was a faint smell of burning flesh.  
  
"Oh shit, I'm sorry," Leorio quickly grabbed the chain and snipped it off. Being more mindful of what he was doing, Leorio resumed cutting, ignoring the demon's quiet whimpers and hisses. Unfortunately, with so many chains it didn't matter how careful Leorio was. The poor thing had passed out well before Leorio had him free and slung over his shoulder. The demon's bat-like wings hung limply, making it awkward to carry him. Not to mention his hair and tail, both of which almost dragged along the ground. Getting him up three flights of stairs without stepping on him or tripping was the hardest thing Leorio had done that day.  
  
He gently set the demon down on the bed in the closest bedroom and took stock of his injuries. Now that he could see them clearly they were… as bad as he thought. Burns covered most of his body, red standing out starkly against pale skin. Leorio jogged downstairs to gather supplies, already mentally going through a checklist of what he needed to do and which areas to focus on first. Once he had everything, he set to work. The neck was first, so badly burnt Leorio was surprised the demon could still breathe. He was as gentle as could be as he cleaned and bandaged the wound, moving on to the arms next. He skipped the wings because how the hell was he supposed to deal with those? He'd figure something out, but first, the body parts he knew.  
  
It's when he got to the thighs that things went to shit. The demon woke up with a hiss and swiped a clawed hand at Leorio, catching him in the chest. Blood bloomed across his shirt as Leorio yelled. That agitated the demon more. He growled, the sound broken and pained, and struggled to sit up. Leorio tried to gently push him back down but had to dodge another swipe for his trouble. Leorio grabbed the demon's wrists, which had him pulling away and kicking out. It wasn't hard to avoid the kicks and restrain him, but it was much harder to avoid the wing whacking him in the side.  
  
"Calm down, I'm not going to hurt you," Leorio tried, but if the demon heard him there was no sign. He didn't want to, it would only freak the demon out more, but Leorio pulled the demon against him and put him in a loose headlock. Before he could try reasoning with him again, the demon sank his teeth deep into Leorio's arm.  
  
"Fuck! Calm down damn it and stop biting me!"  
  
The demon kept struggling, the wing not trapped by Leorio's arm flapping pathetically. It didn't take long for him to tire himself out, Leorio didn't even know where he got that burst of energy from in the first place. Once the struggling slowed to a stop, Leorio gently pried his arm from the demon's mouth and set him back down on the bed. Damn that hurt! Little bastard, but Leorio couldn't fault him for it. Waking up in a strange place with someone touching his bare legs? Leorio would've flipped too.  
  
Wondering if he needed to get a rabies or tetanus shot, Leorio patched himself up before he went back to treating the demon. Moving down the legs he noted that he had those weird legs, the uh, digirade legs? Didigrad? Digimon? The damn legs that furries had, like a dog's hind leg but human sized. The only reason he even knew about it was thanks to Killua's fursuit. Killua and Gon had dragged him to one furry con and that was enough.  
  
The demon's tail was longer than his legs and covered in peach fuzz. Leorio assumed it was prehensile, at least it was easy to bandage. The wings however… Leorio wasn't quite sure how to go about treating them. He rolled the demon onto his stomach and spread the wings out to their full length, wide enough to cover the bed and then some. They were bat-like with jointed claws at the tips, the thin skin stretched between the muscles soft and warm to the touch. Along the top edge and trailing down each joint was a golden pattern similar to lace. It was gorgeous, the golden skin shimmering in the light as if it were metallic ink. Leorio rubbed one of the lines to see but it was definitely part of the skin. Beautiful and deadly, not a great combination for Leorio's resolve.  
  
Bandaging the wings was an exercise in creativity but Leorio somehow managed it. So long as the wings didn't close, the bandages should stay. So basically just until the demon woke up. All in all he was satisfied with his work. He felt like he should put some boxers on the poor guy but they'd end up coming right back off when he changed the bandages later. Besides, he didn't exactly want to rip a tail hole in any of his.

  
Leorio stood to the side of the bed and watched the demon sleep. He could barely believe this was happening, it had to be a dream. He should take a picture, just to prove to himself that this was real. Then again, it was rather creepy to snap a picture of a person sleeping. He at least assumed this demon was sentient enough to object to it, and not just some wild animal driven by instinct. His eyes seemed too intelligent for him not to be aware. Hopefully that meant he could be reasoned with, and if not… Well, Leorio had dug this hole, he just hoped it wouldn't end up being his grave.  
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is the whole reason this fic exists. That scene of Kurapika strung up came to me so hard that 40k+ words fell out of my brain.


	3. Chapter Three

The demon didn't move for the rest of the day. Leorio brought his textbooks into the room so he could study while keeping an eye on his new ward, but he didn't get much done. Every few minutes he'd look up to check on the demon, but each time there was no change. The silence was oppressive but he didn't dare turn on music in fear that he wouldn't be able to hear when the demon did wake. Anytime he had to leave the room, for a bathroom break or food, he always rushed back. He wasn't sure what he'd do when the demon did wake, but he knew he wanted to be there in case he tried to run off.

He didn't want to sleep in the same room though. The demon was half starved and Leorio didn't want to become a midnight snack. He compromised by sleeping in the room across the hall and locking the door, hoping when he woke there'd still be a demon. Then again, it'd be nice if this were all a dream and he didn't have to worry about being attacked. Didn't have to wonder what else was real in the world.

The next morning the demon was still there and still hadn't moved. Leorio crept closer to see if he was still breathing. That'd be his luck, save a guy only to have him dead by morning. What would he do with the body? Sell it to science? That seemed like a good way to get the government involved and get shipped off to area fifty-one or something. Luckily, or unluckily depending on how he looked at it, the demon was still alive and looked rather serene in his sleep.

Satisfied the demon didn’t seem to be waking up anytime soon, Leorio headed downstairs and across the garden to his room to re-bandage himself and get dressed before coming back to make breakfast. Microwaved bacon, waffles, and eggs he barely knew how to scramble. It wasn't the breakfast of champions but it was good enough. He made sure to make a second portion before he stopped and wondered if the demon would even eat it. What did demons eat? Meat? Blood? The souls of the damned? Whatever it was, Leorio was going to at least offer something other than himself to eat.

He sat the second plate down on the bedside table and brought his over to the desk, watching the demon as he ate. He really was pretty, that pale skin and long blond hair was just Leorio's type. If he hadn't seen the guy naked, Leorio would have sworn he was a woman with how sweet his face was. When he realized he was staring like some kind of creeper, Leorio turned back to his books.

An hour went by, then two with no sign of movement from the demon. Leorio stopped checking quite so often and managed to actually get some studying done. He went downstairs for a book and spent at least thirty minutes searching the library and his room for the damn thing. Book in hand, Leorio returned to the demon's room and there he was, sitting up in bed with his legs curled underneath him and chewing on some bacon. Leorio jerked away from the door and his back hit the wall with a thump, his book hitting the floor with a louder thump. He felt a little lightheaded with how fast his heart was racing. The demon was awake, he was awake and moving and it was do or die time. Leorio hated how literal that was.

Taking a deep breath, he walked into the room only to be pinned by those golden eyes. God they were beautiful, just shy of inhuman in their color. The demon's gaze was as deadly and sharp as it had been before, only with a little less heat. Leorio cleared his throat, tried to say something, and had to clear his throat again.

"Hello there, uh, good morning." He waved awkwardly but the demon didn't move an inch. "So, you're probably wondering what the hell's going on. I don't know why you were chained up under my house but you looked like you needed a hand and I guess I'm a sucker so I decided to help out." Still no movement. Leorio shifted to his other leg and rubbed the back of his neck. "I want to be a doctor and what kind of doctor just leaves someone under his house to suffer, right? Even a demon nee-"

The demon hissed at that, causing Leorio to jump and bring his arms forward in case of an attack. The fight or flight response was back with the demon glaring murder at him like that, but this time he was choosing to fight.

Leorio stood up straight, his entire six foot four height. "Let's be clear here, I helped you but that doesn't mean I won't stop you if needed. If you attack me, or try to go off on a rampage, I won't hesitate to put you down."

He let the threat hang in the air, watching as the demon bristled and narrowed his eyes. They glared at each other in silence, waiting to see who would make the first move. Sweat beaded and rolled down Leorio's cheek as he stood his ground, despite feeling like he was trapped in a cage with a lion. When it was clear the demon wasn't going to attack, Leorio forced himself to relax. It was one of the hardest things he'd ever done. "I don't want to have to hurt you, I want to help."

The demon studied Leorio and little by little his glare softened. He didn't move, didn't say anything, only watched. Leorio drummed his fingers against his leg before playing with the bottom button of his shirt, waiting on the demon to do something, anything. He was about to say something else, anything to break the silence, but the demon bowed his head in a nod. Leorio let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Okay good, so uh. My name's Leorio by the way, should have started with that probably. What's your name?" There was no reply. "Can you even speak?"

The demon gestured to his throat and mouthed the word "no". Leorio mentally kicked himself. Of course he couldn't talk, his neck was all torn up. Leorio should have known that, being the one to bandage it.

"Right, then I guess this is going to be awkward all around huh?" The demon huffed softly, relaxing only a little bit, but that was enough for Leorio. He started toward the bed, "We need to-" He was stopped by a broken sounding growl that cut off in the middle. The way the demon winced afterwards helped abate some of the terror.

"Serves you right," Leorio said, voice much stronger than he was feeling at the moment. "I already told you I'm not going to hurt you. If I wanted to don't you think I would have already? You've been out a full twenty-four hours and all I've done is help. That's all I want to do. I didn't even tie you up though I probably should have. Stupid not to now that I think about it, but it seemed cruel. Doesn't mean I won't."

Leorio stood there waiting for the demon to do something, not daring push his luck by getting any closer. The demon needed his bandages changed and Leorio was going to change them. He'd saved the guy so he was going to take care of him. He didn't fancy fighting the demon over it though, his arm and chest still stung from the last time they tussled. Finally the demon gestured him closer, though he didn't relax at all.

"Glad to know you have some sense," Leorio said as he gathered his supplies. Now that he was in reach of those razor sharp claws on the demon's hands and wing tips, his bravado leaked out of him. Both of them were tense as Leorio started removing bandages and cleaning the wounds. The demon hissed as a bandage stuck and Leorio almost jumped off the bed. He imagined this is what it felt like to wrangle rattlesnakes, they probably wouldn't bite you but when they did you were fucked.

They sat in silence as Leorio worked, the demon's golden gaze boring into Leorio's skin, every movement scrutinized. Leorio withstood it while he bandaged the neck and down an arm before he swallowed past his dry mouth and spoke.

"Why…" Leorio started, hesitating before continuing, "why were you chained up? Was it because of something you did? Or did someone do that to you?"

He honestly didn't think the demon was going to answer, but he finally held up a hand and made a so-so gesture.

"Both?" The demon pointed in confirmation. "Well that's just vague enough to be disturbing."

The demon smiled, showing a hint of inhuman fangs. Leorio stared as he took the demon's other hand. God, he had a beautiful smile. Those teeth on the other hand…

"You don't eat people do you?"

The smile disappeared from the demon's face, replaced by narrowed eyes as he mouthed the word "no". Leorio tensed, not wanting to be this close to that glare. After a moment of frozen silence, the demon tugged on Leorio's hand, reminding him that they were essentially holding hands. Leorio jumped and went back to work.

As he got closer to the demon's legs, Leorio started talking. Not only to fill the silence but to hopefully distract the demon while Leorio bandaged his thighs. It was also soothing to have something else to focus on other than the demon's gaze on him.

"It's hard to believe I'm doing this, just yesterday I didn't think anything like you existed. Oh lord, that means there's more supernatural shit out there. That's comforting. My little cousin would flip if he knew, he loves chasing ghosts and cryptids. He'd be absolutely enthralled with you, probably running right up and asking a million questions." Leorio smiled, thinking about his fearless little cousin. Before he knew it, he was talking about Gon and Killua and all the hijinks the two got into. It helped the time go by and the demon relaxed little by little, allowing Leorio to re-bandage his thighs with only slight protest.

When Leorio went to do the wings, he realized the demon was half asleep. Leorio gently nudged him to lay down, expecting a fight for putting him in a vulnerable position. The demon tensed up and pushed back against Leorio's hand for a moment before he caught onto what Leorio was trying to do. After a moment's hesitation, he laid down and spread his wings for Leorio. Watching the skin stretch, those gorgeous golden patterns move over the muscles, Leorio knew he could watch that again and again and not get bored. By time Leorio finished with the wings, the demon had fallen asleep.

Leorio let out a breath and stood back, running his hand through his damp hair. That was nerve wracking, and he'd have to do it again later. At least the guy wasn't a carnivore, he'd cleared off everything on his breakfast plate. That'd make feeding him much easier.

Leorio cleaned everything up and took a nice, long, hot shower. His muscles ached from staying tense for so long, and he'd bet the demon wasn't much better off. It went better than it could have though, considering it could have ended up with him dead.

He went back to studying but got even less done. For lunch Leorio ordered take out and the demon woke long enough to scarf it down before he passed out again. It looked painful for him to eat but that didn't stop him. How long had he been starved? It couldn't have been too long, his ribs were only barely showing. Which led back to the question of who had been feeding him and who lit those candles. Leorio supposed he'd get the answer out of the demon sooner or later.

Dinner came around and with it a new problem. The demon tried to get up on his own and almost hit the floor, would have if Leorio hadn't been quick enough to catch him. Both of them froze, the demon pressed against Leorio's chest, his claws caught in Leorio's shirt sleeves. The demon was first to move, trying to pull away from Leorio but not quite having the strength to stand on his own.

"Hey, stop pushing yourself, what are you even trying to do?" Leorio said, trying to get the demon to sit back down but being met with resistance. It felt wrong to force him back into bed so Leorio helped him stay standing. The demon wouldn't look at Leorio as he pointed to the bathroom.

"Oh, uh, yeah here." Leorio helped him into the bathroom and stood outside as he did his business. Despite the obvious weakness as the demon hobbled back to the bed afterwards, his wounds were already healing faster than Leorio expected. It was almost supernatural, which of course it was. There was nothing natural about this guy. It made Leorio a little nervous actually, it'd be next to no time before the guy could get around without Leorio's help. The demon hadn't attacked him yet, so he'd have to hope for the best. He couldn't really do anything else.

The next morning, before going downstairs to start breakfast, Leorio poked his head into the demon's room and felt his heart stop. The demon wasn't there. Leorio darted into the room and then the bathroom and there he was, sitting on the side of the tub and slowly drying his hair. He made a gorgeous picture, water trailing down pale skin, droplets glistening on the wings and his hair cascading down his shoulders like spun gold. Most of the burn wounds were already starting to fade away, making it easy to forget the guy was still hurt. Leorio stared until the demon caught sight of him and hissed, the sound sending slivers of icy fear down his spine. Leorio jerked back out of the bathroom and almost ran out of the room altogether.

"Sorry!" he squeaked. "I was just, yeah I'm sorry. I'm going downstairs to make breakfast now." Leorio retreated into the kitchen before the demon could come after him.

Leorio took his time getting the eggs and sausage ready, hoping the demon would be in a better mood by time he made his way back up. Leorio turned around to grab the pepper and almost threw it in the air because there was the demon, leaning hard against the doorway and watching him. God, Leorio hadn't even heard him approach: that was a terrifying revelation. The demon was wearing clothes that he must have dug out of the closet in the room. A white button up he'd ripped for his wings to fit through. The pants must have gotten the same treatment for his tail which swished along the floor behind him.

They stared at each other for a long moment before the demon started for a chair on shaking legs. Leorio darted forward to pull one out for him but realized his mistake when the demon growled. It still sounded pained but it was much stronger and all the more hair raising for it. Leorio put his hands in the air and backed up until he hit the counter where his eggs were, watching the demon take a careful seat. He really didn't want to turn around, but he could smell the eggs starting to burn so he had no choice. It was hard to concentrate on his cooking when he could feel those golden eyes on his back.

Leorio felt much better when he sat a plate in front of the demon and took a seat across from him, the table acting as a convenient shield. Sitting like this made it feel as if they were two regular people having breakfast.

Leorio studied the demon as they ate, the way his hair slid over his shoulder, the unfamiliar curve of the wings, how his ears had the smallest hint of a point to them. The guy was fascinating to look at. He was also pleasant to look at, and that's probably why Leorio was getting such a deadly look at the moment. Leorio ducked his head and scarfed down his breakfast, trying to ignore the little voice in the back of his head telling him to run.

Once he deemed it safe enough, he glanced up and noticed the demon seemed lost as he looked at the appliances. A thought struck Leorio.

"How long were you down there?"

The demon looked back at him and then to the table before shrugging, wings bobbing with the movement. He mouthed something Leorio though started with "what".

"What… year is it?" A nod. "It's twenty eighteen," That couldn't be what he'd asked, there was no way he'd been down there for more than a year. Leorio could understand why he'd asked though, with that much pain it probably had felt like a century. The demon thought for a moment before holding up his hand plus a finger and then making a zero.

"What?" Leorio asked, thinking he must have gotten that wrong. The demon raised an eyebrow and held up his hands again, this time emphasizing it before making the zero. Leorio stared at him.

"You can't mean sixty years," Leorio said. The demon bowed his head in a nod. Leorio shook his head. "Then how are you alive? You can't survive that long without water!"

The demon gave him a flat look and extended his wings a few times. Leorio didn't care and leaned forward, poking the table. "Demon or no," he ignored the demon's glare and kept going, "you can't live without water. Unless someone was going down there and feeding you?"

The demon held the glare but Leorio was getting used to it by now and glared right back. The demon broke the staring contest first by shaking his head and mouthing what Leorio thought was "no one".

"If no one was going down there then what about the candles?" Leorio poked the table again. "They were lit when I found you."

The demon shrugged again and mouthed something Leorio couldn't quite catch. At Leorio's confused face, the demon mouthed it again slower.

"Magic?" A nod. "You're telling me you've been alone down there for fifty years with magic eternal candles." Leorio raised an eyebrow but the demon merely nodded again.

Leorio thought about that for a moment, how horrifying it must have been. How did starving for fifty years feel? Being burnt at all times with no rest? God, no wonder this guy was so on edge.

"Do you want seconds?"

The demon hesitated and then smiled a tiny smile as he nodded. Leorio almost didn't want to get up, he wanted to savor that smile but he already knew staring was a big no-no.

They ate in almost companionable silence afterwards and the demon even let Leorio help him back up to the bedroom. Leorio left him to sleep, this time taking his books and moving to the other bedroom to give the demon some privacy. He was starting to feel pretty good about all this. The demon seemed dangerous as hell but he hadn't attacked or done anything unwarranted.

He didn't feel good about it later when he discovered the window wide open and the demon gone.


	4. Chapter Four

 

What the fuck did he let loose onto the world? Was this poor city about to be plagued by murders and disappearances? Leorio scoured the house before turning on the local news. He sat on the couch the rest of the day and all night, watching local news and checking local websites, waiting for some sign that something had gone wrong. Of course nothing would show up at first, he hoped, but he didn't want to miss it if or when something did happen, and he didn't want to go back to his room in case the demon came back to the main house. He felt like a negligent zoo keeper who had left the lion's cage open, his stomach churning with the thought of those claws tearing into someone.

It was a long night, made longer by the mini nightmares he kept having as he dozed off. He dreamed about news of mass murder, satanic magic, teeth ripping into flesh, screams and blood. Every time he'd jerk awake, his arm and chest ached with the memory of the demon's attack. He kept telling himself there was no reason to be so paranoid, the demon had only attacked him once and that was out of confusion. It didn't help.

The entire night nothing of note showed up on the news and he was able to get a few hours of sleep here and there. He was far from rested and he couldn't focus on anything throughout the day. Every time he tried, his eyes would lose focus and the worry of the wild thing he'd let loose would start creeping back in. Any kind of noise in the house made him jump, creaks and pops of the old wood, wind outside, it all made him think the demon was back and waiting for him. He supposed if the demon did come back at least he wouldn't have to worry about the city.

It was getting late, and he hadn't eaten anything all day. It was hard to get anything down when his stomach was churning like it was. At least the news was as bland and normal as ever, so he forced himself to get up and head to the kitchen. He pulled out his phone to keep checking the news sites as he walked.

"Leorio."

Leorio screamed and his phone went flying through the air as he whirled around. The demon stood in his dining room as if he belonged there, as if he hadn't snuck in and scared the hell out of Leorio. Thankfully he wasn't bloody or hurt anywhere, wearing the same clothes that he left with. His hair was shorter, much shorter, the bob cupping his face and bringing out his gorgeous, terrifying eyes.

"Holy shit you jackass!" Leorio said in a voice a bit higher than he'd like. He clutched his chest where it felt like his heart was trying to beat its way out.

The demon bowed his head, looking like he was trying not to smile. "I'm sorry. I wanted to thank you for helping me these last few days." His voice was soft, completely at odds with what Leorio expected him to sound like.

"You couldn't have done that like a normal person and knocked on the door? God, how did you even get in here?" Leorio looked around for his phone and spotted it halfway across the room by the kitchen door. He hoped it wasn't broken, not like he could get a sixty year old demon to pay for it if it was.

"The upstairs windows aren't locked," the demon said.

"Oh," Leorio made a mental note to fix that. "Hey, now that you can talk, what's your name?"

"My name is Kurapika." He crossed his arms and didn't quite look at Leorio. "I must confess I came here for more than just thanking you. I'd like to ask for your help."

"Okay?" Leorio could guess what he needed help with. The same thing all sixty year olds need help with.

"This world is much different than the one I left behind. I don't know how to navigate it, I don't know how to gather information. As of right now I have no hope of finding my family's eyes so I need your help."  
  
"No."

"No?" Kurapika said, confusion crossing his face. "Why not?"

"I'm not helping some demon-" The most terrifying growl he'd ever heard cut him off. He straightened up, every hair standing on end. The air thickened as Kurapika narrowed his eyes and Leorio was very forcefully reminded who he was talking to. Kurapika may look like a handsome young man, but he was very much a demon and Leorio had just rattled his cage.

"If you won't help me that's fine, but you won't be staying in this house," Kurapika said, the growl in his voice making the words threatening.

"Excuse me?" Leorio was proud at how steady his voice was, he wasn't feeling very brave at the moment, staring down a demon. "This is my house."

"Not anymore. Get your things and get out." Kurapika gave one last glare before he headed around the dining room table toward the kitchen as if the conversation was over.

"No," Leorio said, just as strongly as the first time. Kurapika froze and turned to him, the tension in the air ramping up. Leorio instinctively shifted his center of balance lower, ready for an attack if it came.

"If you won't get out, I'll force you out," Kurapika said, voice dangerously low.

"Bring it," Leorio said, bringing his arms up at the ready. Kurapika studied him for a long moment before he launched himself over the table, wings spread out like something out of a nightmare.

Leorio yelped and rolled out of the way, not nearly as ready for that as he thought. Muscle memory kicked in as he came up and he managed to block Kurapika's punch. If he took away the wings and tail, this was just another street brawl that he needed to get through. He'd never thought he'd be thankful for all the fights he got into as a teen.

Leorio shoved Kurapika's arm out of the way and surged upwards for a punch of his own, landing it squarely on Kurapika's jaw. Kurapika stumbled back, dazed by the hit and eyes wide. Leorio pressed his advantage, shoving Kurapika hard and forcing him back and off balance. Kurapika stumbled and allowed himself to hit the floor and roll, coming up on all fours and growling like a wild animal. His tail lashed the air behind him and that was all the warning Leorio got before Kurapika launched himself again.

This time he was better prepared, but for punches, not claws. He managed to dodge the first swipe but the second scored him up the arm when he tried to block. Leorio stumbled back and ducked under the swipe that would have ripped into his face. As Kurapika overshot, Leorio tackled him around the middle, bringing him to the floor. Leorio sat up and went to throw a punch to Kurapika's face, only to have Kurapika get a foot under him and kick hard.

Leorio flew backwards and landed on his back. He lay there dazed for a second, red hot pain on his stomach where Kurapika's claws dug in. He didn't have much time to recover, Kurapika was up and aiming a kick to his side. Leorio rolled away and kicked Kurapika's leg out from under him, hurrying and jumping on Kurapika's back to pin him down.

He was almost immediately thrown off, Kurapika much stronger than his small frame suggested. Kurapika hissed and growled, thrashing wings and tail wildly in an attempt to get up. Leorio struggled to keep Kurapika down, pinning his wings down and trying to get the tail with a leg. He let go of one wing and grabbed a fistful of hair, smashing Kurapika's head into the wood floor to stun him. The now free wing came straight up for his face and if Leorio hadn't jerked back in time he would have lost an eye. As it was, the claw dug a deep gash from nose to cheek under his left eye. Leorio yelled and was almost unseated but he managed to force Kurapika back down and catch the errant wing before it could do more harm.

"Yield!" Leorio yelled, tasting the blood flowing freely down his face. Kurapika went rigid under him before bursting into movement, struggling even harder than before. Leorio barely managed to keep him down, knowing if he let Kurapika up then he was a dead man. He grabbed the claw on a wingtip, not caring if it dug into his skin, and bent the wing over Kurapika's back so he could hold both with one hand. His now free hand smashed Kurapika's head into the floor again, blood smearing into the golden hair.

"I said yield dammit!"

"Absolutely not!" Kurapika yelled, trying his best to get a wing free. His tail wrapped around Leorio's waist, trying to pull him off but Leorio wasn't budging.

"I don't have anything better to do tonight so I'm sitting right here until you fucking yield!" Even if Kurapika did, there was no guarantee that it would stop the fight, but Leorio knew the psychological effect of being forced to give up. It breaks the will to fight in most people, he just hoped it would work with demons.

They struggled for what felt like hours. Kurapika bucking and thrashing, growling all the while, and Leorio steadfastly not moving. He kept Kurapika's face pressed into the floor, but he didn't bang him around anymore than he already had. He wanted the demon gone, not dead. Kurapika surged up against him and then went completely limp.

"I'm not falling for that," Leorio said. Kurapika held it for a moment before hissing and tensing back up.

"Fine," Kurapika ground out, even that small admission sounding like it cost him.

"Fine what? I told you, I'm not letting you up until you admit I won."

Kurapika was trembling under him, with rage or something else Leorio couldn't say. In a small voice, Kurapika finally said, "You've won."

Leorio let Kurapika go and got off of him, the sensation of his tail sliding from around his waist oddly gentle compared to everything else. Kurapika stood up, glared bloody murder at Leorio, and stomped off. The front door slammed a moment later.

Leorio let out a shaky breath, collapsing into a chair at the dining table. He hurt. His arm, his stomach, and his face most especially. Face wounds always bled an absurd amount and his was no different. Blood covered the bottom half of his face and it was already soaking into his shirt. He'd have to scrub the floor as well, but that would have to wait. Leorio pulled his shirt off and used it to try and staunch the flow, knowing he was going to need stitches. He didn't fancy practicing his skills on himself, which meant going to the hospital. Which meant trying to explain this mess to someone else.

With a groan, he got up, retrieved his thankfully not broken phone, and got dressed. He tossed his shirt in exchange for actual clean gauze and took the time to try and patch himself up. The trip to the hospital was horrible, trying to drive with one hand while his face bled everywhere. It was at least better than sitting in the ER waiting room with the screaming kids and moaning adults while feeling woozy from blood loss and hunger. If he didn't need stitches he would never have come.

His phone rang while he was sitting there, snapping him out of his stupor. He answered without looking at the caller ID, happy for some distraction from the wait. "Hello?"

"Hi dear, I called to see how you were settling into your new house," Mito said. Leorio straightened up, wishing he would have looked now.

"Oh yeah it's uh, I'm doing great." Smooth. Mito thought so too.

"What did I just catch you doing?" she teased, the smile evident in her voice.

Leorio laughed, the sound cutting off as he grit his teeth in pain. He made a note to himself not to smile while his face was sliced open. "Nothing, nothing. Don't you think I wouldn't have answered the phone if I was doing something?"

"So says mister answers the phone while in the shower. Where are you by the way? It sounds like there's crying kids."

"Uh, that's the TV," Leorio said, wincing at the obvious lie and then gritting his teeth again at how it pulled on the gash.

"Leorio," Mito said slowly, "I know you're lying. What are you trying to hide? I mean it's none of my business but screaming kids makes me worry."

Leorio snorted. "I think that'd make me worry too. It's nothing serious, I promise, but I'm in the hospital.

"What happened," Mito said flatly. He could just picture her deadpan face, it was the one she always had when Gon came home acting innocent.

"I uh, I got into a fight." He could hear her take a breath so he quickly added, "He started it! I'm fine, I just need a few stitches and I'll be on my way."

"Alright…" she wasn't completely convinced but she wouldn't push it. Bless her. "I don't like you getting into fights but it is what it is. Does that mean the city's dangerous? Gon has been talking about heading back up there."

"No!" Leorio said quickly, too quickly. "I mean no, the town's not dangerous it was just this one crazy guy. I don't want Gon down here until I deal with him."

"He'll be heartbroken but I'll tell him. And if for some reason he does end up at your door without me letting you know, give him an earful and send him right back to me."

Leorio laughed, smiling despite the pain. "You don't think he'd be crazy enough to take a bus out here without your permission do you?"

"I'm more worried someone from around here will give him a ride. I'll tell him you're busy with classes and that should deter him. When do they start?"

"Orientation is Monday, I'm looking forward to it." Leorio started talking about his classes and how hard he'd been studying already, letting the conversation distract him from the pain. Mito told him how hard Gon was not studying, instead running off with Killua and doing who knew what. They came home with what ended up being a baby cougar and wanted to keep it. Mito could have killed them and Leorio couldn't blame her.

Talking about his little cousin's shenanigans helped pass the wait but the conversation eventually turned back to Leorio's new house and the city. Without thinking, Leorio asked how to get blood out of hardwood floors.

"…Leorio, why is there blood on your floors?" Mito asked, voice suspicious.

"Uh," Leorio said, unable to come up with a good lie so he settled for the truth. "That's where the fight happened actually."

"And there's enough blood to need to ask how to clean it up?" Now he could tell she was getting worried. If only she knew what really happened, she'd flip.

"Yeah well… I swear it's not bad Mito, I'm fine and so is he it just, things got out of hand for a bit there."

"Why was he in your house? Did you get robbed?"

"No, no, nothing like that. It was uh, acquaintance that turned sour. We just had a disagreement, I don't think he'll be a problem anymore."

"You don't sound very sure." Neither did she.

Leorio took a breath and forced himself to mean it. "I promise, everything's fine Mito, no need to worry."

"Okay… Oh, I have to go, I hear Killua yelling outside. Love you Leorio, be safe."

"Love you, and I will be."

As he hung up the phone he wondered how safe he really was. He had won that night purely on the element of surprise. If Kurapika had been expecting him to fight back, Leorio was sure he wouldn't be sitting here right now. What would happen the next time Kurapika attacked? Because Leorio didn't doubt there'd be a next time, but he wasn't going to leave his own house because some demon threatened him.

As Leorio was called into the back and forced to assure the nurses that no, he didn't want the police involved thank you very much, the thoughts of another attack weighed heavy on his mind. He could easily be killed the moment he walked into his house, or even murdered in his sleep. He considered staying in a hotel but fuck that, better to get any confrontation over with now than let it fester.

He was reconsidering the hotel option as he pulled up the dark driveway. The sun was setting behind the trees, casting the house in a spooky half glow. Was Kurapika waiting for him? Would he ambush him later? Leorio crept up to the doorway, every sense struggling to find something out of the ordinary. Kurapika wasn't waiting for him in the foyer so Leorio grabbed an umbrella from the stand and slowly made his way into the house. There was no noise, no demon, and he almost went ahead and left for the other building before he noticed there was also no blood.

Kurapika must have mopped while Leorio was out, which meant he was still around. Leorio did another sweep of the house, umbrella held at the ready like a bat, and found evidence of a recent shower and Kurapika's bloody shirt in the washroom. Was he waiting in the other building for him? Or was he perhaps down in his shrine? Leorio wasn't about to push his luck by going down there so he locked every window and door before heading over to the other building.

Good news, no sign of Kurapika. Bad news, no sign of Kurapika. He still had to worry about being attacked but for that night at least, Leorio didn't care. He was tired, he hurt, and he was shaky from not eating all day. After locking everything he could think of, he forced himself to eat something and settled in to sleep. He'd deal with demons the next day, and if he never woke up? At least he wouldn't know about it.


	5. Chapter 5

Leorio did not wake up dead the next morning, nor was he killed in the next week before orientation. It could be because he mostly stayed out of the main building, but he was certain it wasn't because Kurapika had left. Leorio would go into the house for something and find little things that made it clear Kurapika was still around. Books out of place, pillows shifted, food missing, small things that would have gone unnoticed if Leorio weren't on high alert.

The worst was when he'd go in and see a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye, or feel a gaze he couldn't find watching him. Each time he expected an attack, but it never came, and each time it made him more and more paranoid. What was Kurapika waiting on? He had made it clear he wanted Leorio out of the house, so why wasn't Kurapika forcing him out? Leorio started having nightmares of blood-eyed demons ripping him to shreds or something stalking him in the dark that he couldn't get away from.

It got to a point where Leorio was staying in the house specifically to confront Kurapika, armed with a knife of course, but Kurapika never showed his face. Leorio wasn't quite brave enough to head down into the basement shrine, but the house was his. Better to get the attack over with now than to live with a constant current of anxiety running through him. At least that was what he wanted to do, but Kurapika refused to cooperate. Leorio was starting to suspect he was dragging things out on purpose.

When he wasn’t flirting with death, Leorio had the news on and would half listen to it through the day. Just because he knew where the demon was staying didn't mean Kurapika wasn't out and about attacking people. Thankfully there wasn't anything to report, but that didn't stop him from dropping everything when he heard the words "stabbing" or "murder".

The days seemed to crawl leading up to orientation and Leorio thought that might be what annoyed him the most. He was about to start college and here he was too busy worrying if he'd see the next day. It was supposed to be something to look forward to, but now every time he'd leave the house he had to worry if he'd be allowed back in. He was glad he didn't need a job thanks to his wine cellar and the mini fortune it brought him, but honestly having one would have at least distracted him.

The day of orientation, Leorio locked his building up tight and looked over at the main house, but as always there was no outward sign that a demon lived there. He supposed it was silly to expect dark clouds and ravens to materialize but it felt so surreal seeing a cute old building. Leorio put it and all his worries out of his mind for now, determined to enjoy the day and not think of possible murder or living nightmares.

Despite arriving early, the campus was already crowded. People flowed like rivers across the roads and between cars, making finding a place to park a pain in the ass. Finding the main desk through the crowds was also a pain in the ass. All he truly needed was to pick up his schedule and get his picture taken for his ID, but he wanted to stay and get a tour of the campus and go through the club crawl later, maybe even take part in some of the games they had going on.

The tours started every twenty minutes and he had a little time to kill before the next one so he stood off to the side and people watched. There was a dumpy guy leading a group of younger students around, talking about how he could show them the ropes. He spied a kid in suspenders that looked too young to be here off to the side, studying his laptop. Student after student from all different majors walked past him. Some were easy to guess, nursing students wearing scrubs or art students carrying their sketchbooks, but most were dressed like typical young adults. Leorio stood out in his suit, plenty of people turning to look at him, and that’s the way he liked it. Keep the eyes on him and he was bound to make some connections.

The tour took them through each major building on campus with various stops to discuss campus policy or give a history lesson on landmarks and the founders. One of the first buildings toured was the one he had all his classes in, so by the time they got to the fourth statue he was getting bored.

"Who cares if some old dude played with a rock," he muttered to himself.

The guy next to him huffed and looked over at Leorio as he said, "That old dude invented the safest way to clean clay artifacts. He died a multimillionaire."

Leorio looked back to the dumpy, mole-like statue of the guy and said, "Huh, maybe I should go around rubbing off rocks. Wait." Leorio covered his face with his hand as the guy next to him burst into laughter.

Once the guy calmed down, he held out his hand to Leorio. "I'll save us both the embarrassment of a bad pick up line. I'm Zepile."

Leorio shook his hand with a smile. "Leorio." The guy was sharply dressed and unconventionally handsome with those crazy eyebrows. "I'm guessing you're in the art history program?"

"That's right. I want to restore artifacts and expose forgeries. You a business major?" Zepile looked Leorio up and down and judging by that look he liked what he saw.

"Med student actually. Doctors gotta dress nice right?"

Zepile laughed, "I'd go with a white coat doc, a suit makes you look like you're in the business." He made a slicing gesture with his thumb under his eye. Leorio suddenly remembered his scar and that was probably why he kept getting looks.

"You might have a point there," Leorio said, running his finger along the raised flesh. It barely hurt anymore and he'd completely forgotten about it.

The tour guide finally finished with their spiel and the group started moving again. Zepile elbowed Leorio and jerked his head off to the side. "Wanna ditch the rest and go see the club crawl?"

"It's like you read my mind," Leorio said, following Zepile across the lawn to the lane where all the clubs were lined up. Bright colors from all the posters and loud calls from the recruiters made it seem like a carnival had come to town. There were booths for all kinds of hobbies from origami to metal working. The people milling about were just as varied. A pink haired girl was calling people over to a poker club, a skinny girl was arguing vehemently with someone over at a cooking club, and there was a bald guy chatting up anyone who stood still long enough to listen. Leorio didn't even think baldy was part of a club.

He and Zepile kept a running commentary on the booths and people they saw, but there was so much eye candy that Leorio had a hard time focusing on anything else. A dark skinned guy at a dog club grabbed his attention and he slowed down to check out his butt. The guy turned around and caught Leorio looking, his eyes widening in what might have been fear? Before Leorio could process what it could mean, Zepile hit him to get his attention.

"Look at that babe over there, I get to study under her." Zepile pointed to a woman dressed in a cute little pink and black bunny get up jumping up and down as she called people over. Leorio turned back to the dog guy but he had already disappeared into the sea of people. Maybe he had mistaken that look.

They continued down the lane, picking up fliers for promising clubs and pointing out beauties. The club crawl led right into the quad where the college was hosting games. Zepile tried his hand at ring toss and lost miserably to a kid in what looked like a turban. Leorio knew better than to try a game like that so he played to his strength and gave tug-a-war a try.

He easily beat the reigning champion and the next few waves of challengers. They even let a group of people try against him but no one could stop him. Not until a guy with a black pompadour stepped up and even then Leorio probably would have won if he hadn't been tired.

Leorio was soon swarmed by girls and muscle heads, including mister pompadour, Knuckle. By time he left orientation he had several phone numbers and a promise to meet a group at a bar the next night to watch a game of soccer.

Leorio was feeling pretty good about everything until he pulled up to his house and realized he couldn't actually do much with those phone numbers. He couldn't invite anyone over because he had a hell beast lurking around. What if he had a girl with him and Kurapika decided to attack? Leorio didn't want to bring anyone else into his nightmare.

It was with a sour mood that he joined the others at the bar the next night, but the booze and company quickly turned that around. The game wasn't anything to write home about but the way Knuckle kept yelling at the TV had Leorio crying with laughter. The food sucked, the TV was full of static, and the atmosphere was lousy, but it was still the most fun he'd had since he moved. He had planned to go home after the game, but it didn't take much for Zepile to rope him into playing a few rounds of pool.

Leorio sipped his drink as Knuckle lined up a shot, looking around at the dingy little bar. "Man, my place is so much nicer than this. No tiny TV and crappy table," he kicked the leg of the pool table which made a concerning creak.

"Man stop it, I'm trying to play here," Knuckle said. He took his shot and the ball hit off the side uselessly.

"Trying is the key word," Leorio laughed.

"If your place is so much better, why the hell are we here?" Zepile said as he took his turn.

"I can't bring anyone over, I got a pest problem at the moment." Understatement of the century.

"What kind of pest? I know a girl that can get rid of anything," Zepile said. He pocketed a ball and looked so smug about it Leorio flicked some ice from his drink at him.

"It's not bugs, it's uh…" Leorio debated on lying but decided on bending the truth. It was easier. "It's an acquaintance of mine that's living there and we don't exactly see eye to eye."

"Then kick him out," Knuckle said simply.

"It's more complicated than that."

Zepile sank another ball and straightened to take a drink. "Is he an ex?"

"No, more like a roommate gone crazy. Even if I do toss him out, all his stuff is still there and he'd literally kill me if I touched any of it." If only they knew how serious he was.

"Man fuck him, call the cops and toss his ass out on the lawn," Zepile said, finally missing a shot.

"Can't get the cops involved. I want him gone not," killed, dissected, studied, "in jail."

"He the one that gave you that?" Knuckle said, pointing to under his eye. Leorio automatically reached up and ran a finger along the scar.

"Yeah. We had a disagreement. I won but he got me good didn't he?" Leorio smirked, taking his turn and effortlessly sinking a ball.

"If you won once you can win again. I say kick his ass and toss him to the curb. It's your house," Zepile said. Knuckle nodded in agreement, at least until Leorio sank two balls in one shot.

"Damnit!" Knuckle said. "That's me out." He tossed his cue down, knocked back the rest of his drink, and pointed to Leorio. "But really, if you need some help getting this bastard out I'm game for a brawl. I got a cousin that'll throw down anytime too, just say the word and we'll get that prick out of there."

"You're an alright guy Knuckle, but I think I can handle it on my own. I'll confront him and tell him to move out before I toss him out." Leorio wasn't quite sure how well that'd go down, but he was tired of being nervous around his own house. He downed his drink and ordered another one when he realized he'd have to go down to Kurapika's shrine room to confront him.

 

* * *

 

He was a little drunk as he headed down into the depths of his house. He had to be to do something this stupid. As he stepped into the room the sight that greeted him took his breath away. Kurapika had cleaned off the altar and replaced the dead flowers for fresh ones, giving the scene a natural warmth that had been missing before. The array of color amid the greenery and the golden light of the candles seemed to celebrate the eyes as much as mourn them, as if they were something unmeasurably precious. The eyes themselves floated in their cylinders like twinkling jewels, the most gorgeous color Leorio had ever seen.

"Stupid altar, stupid Kurapika," he mumbled to himself as he looked around the room, making sure he was alone. The only sign of Kurapika was how clean the room was. "Why'd it have'ta be under my house? I knew this was too good to be true."

Leorio walked closer to the altar, studying the eyes. They really were gorgeous, but gorgeous enough to kill and maim for? Not to mention it was Kurapika's own family he was killing. It was sick.

"Stupid eyes. You're the problem." If Kurapika weren't a family murdering monster Leorio would be more than happy to help him. He reached for one of the cylinders and a growl was the only warning he got before what felt like a wrecking ball hit him square in the chest. He flew back and landed hard, struggling to breathe. Once he managed to catch his breath enough, he looked up to see Kurapika standing between him and the altar with a look of murder on his face.

"You will leave, now," Kurapika said, voice low. He looked like he had the last time they'd fought, though the clothes were new. He must have been raiding the closets.

Leorio coughed and picked himself up, rubbing his chest. "Fuck you," he wheezed.

Kurapika's eyes narrowed, "I won't tell you twice."

Leorio straightened and stood his ground, not sure if he'd gotten used to the demon's presence or if the alcohol was giving him courage. "Oh shut up. I'm not going anywhere, this is my damn house! You," Leorio jabbed his finger in Kurapika's direction, "are the one that needs to leave."

"No."

"I'm not asking! Get your ass out of my house and stay out! I'll toss you out myself." Leorio brought his fists up, ready for a fight that wasn't coming.

"I'm not going to fight you and I'm not leaving," Kurapika said, not impressed.

"The fuck you aren't," Leorio charged toward Kurapika, fist held back and ready to punch but Kurapika merely dodged and shoved Leorio away, making him stumble and fall.

"Damnit, fight me you coward!" Leorio got up and charged again, with the same end result.

"This is embarrassing. You're drunk, go take a cold shower," Kurapika said, not bothering to put up his guard. It pissed Leorio off.

"Fuck you!" he said as he picked himself up yet again. "Get your shit and get out of my house!"

"This isn't part of your house," Kurapika pointed out.

"Then stay down here and rot for all I care! I don't want you stepping foot in my house again ya hear? I catch you and I'll kick your ass like I did the first time."

Kurapika's hands curled into fists but he didn't say anything. Leorio sensed a sore spot and pressed his luck.

He walked closer, finally getting the satisfaction of Kurapika tensing up. "I should just beat you right now, rough you up so much you don't want to-" He jabbed his finger against Kurapika's chest and the next thing he knew he was spinning sickeningly and landing hard on his back. Again.

Kurapika leaned over him as he tried to catch his breath. "You're very scary, now get out." Kurapika opened his wings and jumped, the air buffeting Leorio as he flapped and soared up to the rafters. Leorio hadn't noticed the wooden beams at all. Kurapika had a hammock strung up there and little nets where he must keep his stuff.

Leorio picked himself up with a groan and stumbled as he got to his feet. "Fine. Fine you bastard. Stay down here if you want." Leorio glared up at the tail hanging off the side of the hammock and flipped it the bird before stumbling his way back to the stairs.

The next morning he woke up with what he thought was the worst hangover he'd ever had, until he realized it was his back that was killing him and not his head. Did he really go down into the lair of the beast and try to fight it drunk? Apparently yes, and he got his ass handed to him in the most embarrassing way possible, with apathy. That was all he could really remember, Kurapika being wholly unimpressed with him as he beat him. That was probably the only reason Leorio escaped with just a sore back. He was lucky to still be alive. If he kept pressing his luck he wouldn't be for much longer.


	6. Chapter 6

He had no idea why or how, but his drunken stunt seemed to do the trick. Over the next week there was no sign of Kurapika anywhere in the main house. Nothing was out of place, no food was missing, nothing had changed. As far as he could tell, Kurapika hadn't stepped foot in the house since that drunken night. Leorio had thought he'd feel better with Kurapika gone, but he didn't. At least with Kurapika hanging out in his house Leorio knew where he was, but now… now there was no telling where the demon lurked.

At least when his college classes started they kept his mind occupied. Monday through Thursday, all morning long and then heading to the library to flirt and maybe study. He still hadn't risked bringing anyone back to his house yet, even with Kurapika's disappearance. Once he was sure Kurapika was gone for good though, he had a good list of people to invite.

Speaking of people he'd like to get to know better, he kept seeing that dark skinned guy from the club crawl around campus. Leorio could never find an opportunity to introduce himself, their paths kept brushing against each other but never fully crossing. It was frustrating, not only because Leorio wanted to ask about that look the guy gave him, but also because he was attractive.

When he wasn't at the library flirting or out on the town with a date or with Zepile and Knuckle, he studied at home in his own library. It was stocked with anatomy books and encyclopedias, both his own and the ones left there, and the window seat was perfect to study in. It also doubled as a way to make sure Kurapika was staying away. He'd be able to hear any door in the house open, including Kurapika's trap door. He wasn't stupid enough to go back down there after poking the beast while drunk, but that didn't mean he didn't want to. If he could just go down and see if those eyes had been moved, it would confirm that Kurapika had left for good. He'd rather not die though.

There was a knock at the door one night while he was in the library. He tried peeking out the window to see who it was but the porch blocked the view. It was too late for any door to door types, and no one at college knew where he lived. Curious, he got up and answered the door, coming face to face with a very bloody Kurapika.

Leorio jerked back, "Whoa! What the hell?!" Oh god did he finally go murder someone? What unsuspecting person got ripped to shreds?

Once he got past the initial shock, Leorio took in the rest of Kurapika. He was holding his side where the most blood was and one of his wings was held awkwardly.

"I got into a fight. Can I come in?" Kurapika said, as if showing up at someone's door covered in blood was normal.

"What? No!" Leorio said reflexively. "What do you mean you got into a fight? With who?!" What monster could hurt this monster?

"Two therianthropes, they started it."

"Therian what now?" Was that some kind of demon? A monster? Images of a cthullu type beast sprang to mind.

Kurapika sighed, "Therianthropes, animal people. Like a werewolf but different animals. They lured me into a trap."

"A trap for what? To eat you or…?"

Kurapika gave him a distasteful look, "No, they were most likely trophy hunters."

"Trophy hunters?" Leorio asked. What the hell kind of underworld did these magic people have?

Kurapika sighed, "I can explain everything just, can I come in first?" He gestured with a bloody hand into the house and Leorio jumped, quickly moving out of the way.   
  
"Oh shit yeah, sorry." Leorio watched as Kurapika walked in and sat gingerly on the coffee table, conscious of the blood dripping from his side and wing. From behind Leorio could see the slits cut into the shirt for Kurapika's wings and he watched in fascination as Kurapika slipped the shirt off, wings tucking into the holes.

Leorio tore his gaze away from the sight of Kurapika stretching his injured wing and closed the door, locking it for good measure. He left Kurapika in the living room and ducked into the bathroom for towels and warm water. The wounds weren't too bad, a bite to the side from what he swore was a fucking alligator, and scratches to the wing along the top. Leorio went to work cleaning the blood off and assessing the damage in silence, focusing on his patient more than his curiosity.

Once he was sure Kurapika wasn't going to pass out on him he spoke. "Alright, what happened exactly?"

Kurapika didn't say anything right at first, but finally said, "I was trying to track down someone I used to know and those two claimed to know how to find them. Said they had a special connection to an internet. I don't know how any of this new technology works so I walked right into their trap. Could you teach me?"

"No." Leorio said, remembering exactly what Kurapika wanted to do with that knowledge. He couldn't in good conscience teach Kurapika how to track people down when Kurapika wanted to find his family for their eyes.

Kurapika hissed quietly, face souring, but he didn't push the issue. Leorio finished cleaning the wounds and started bandaging Kurapika's torso before he spoke again.

"So trophy hunters, huh? It's hard to imagine anyone hunting down a demon." Kurapika growled, the sound sending chills down Leorio's spine, enough for him to draw back and tense up.

Kurapika glared at him. "I am not a demon and honestly it's insulting that you keep calling me that."

"Oh, then what are you?" Leorio said, and then winced at how that came out and backtracked. "I mean, what do you call yourself?"

"I'm a, a fae, a magical creature as humans say. The therianthropes that attacked me are also fae, so are werewolves and vampires and dragons."

Leorio stared. "Dragons?" he said, voice a bit higher than he'd like. Of course he knew there'd be more magical things out in the world, but he hadn't gotten around to thinking about it, much less thinking about dragons.

Kurapika smiled, "Dragons, yes. Humans don't see half the world around them."

"Why would a dragon need to hide?" How could a dragon hide?

"Humans outnumber fae substantially and history shows that when we try to intermingle, it's the fae that pay the price."

"Ah, that makes sense." All the legends and stories about dragons do have them end up dying in the end he supposed. "I guess that's where the trophy hunting comes in. A dragon head would be a badass mantel piece."

There was a small growl and Leorio looked up to find Kurapika glaring at him. "Oh! I don't mean, that would be sick and wrong to actually do to a sentient thing. Jeez, I'm not advocating for murder here," Leorio said as he ducked his head and went back to bandaging Kurapika. Great, what a thing to say to a demo- fae. Guy probably had dragon friends.

After a moment of silence, Kurapika let out a huff. "I know what you meant, but most people either don't realize what they're saying or they don't care."

Leorio nodded as he finished wrapping Kurapika's torso and moved on to the wing. "Yeah sorry, I didn't think before talking."

"Do you ever?" Kurapika asked.

Leorio stopped and looked over at Kurapika's face to see if he was joking. Kurapika had a serious expression but couldn't keep it and soon smiled a tiny smile. It was as cute as Leorio remembered it.

"Ha ha," Leorio said flatly, "don't make fun of the person fixing you up." Leorio poked Kurapika where the wing met back, partially to tease him and partially to see if he could figure out how they connected. He'd really love to study Kurapika's anatomy one day.

Kurapika shuffled his wings as his smile grew. "That's a good point. Thank you for doing this by the way, I don't think I did before."

"No problem. This is at least good experience. Though… I'm going to be honest here, bandaging your wings is a pain in the ass."

Kurapika laughed quietly and it was as cute as his smile. Leorio was doomed. "Wings are always going to be awkward. I'm glad I don't have feathers though, they seem like more hassle than they're worth."

Leorio imagined Kurapika with feathered wings, golden and red like a phoenix. He'd be beautiful. "It's a good thing you don't, I don't know how to handle feathers other than plucking them."

"I don't know anyone who would appreciate that."

"Do you know many people with feathers?"

Kurapika was quiet for a moment, "… I used to. I'm not sure who's still around after all this time and I don't know how to find them."

That had to be rough, waking up after sixty years to find all your friends either gone or moved on, knowing there were ways to find them but not knowing how to use them. It made Leorio want to help, but he didn't want to put anyone in danger by doing so. Then again, Leorio hadn't felt in danger this whole time. Maybe Kurapika wasn't as dangerous as he'd first thought. Maybe…

Leorio finished patching up Kurapika's wing to the best of his ability and asked, "I never got to ask, how did you end up under my house?"

Kurapika looked down to the bloody floor and rubbed his shoulder, not answering. Leorio sighed and started to go find a mop when Kurapika finally spoke.

"I tried to get revenge on someone but he beat me to it." Kurapika's voice went low and dangerous. "He had no right to demand I suffer after what he did." It could have been a trick of the light, but Leorio swore Kurapika's eyes were red.

"What did he do?" Leorio asked, voice quiet.

Kurapika blinked and shook his head, the red in his eyes disappearing, if it had been there in the first place. "It isn't your concern, and I'd rather not speak of it."

Normally Leorio would demand to know but something about how he said it made him hold his tongue. Kurapika sounded weary, as if the mere thought of it sapped his energy. What had that guy done? And what did Kurapika do to him that warranted such torture? Leorio got the feeling that whatever went on between those two was huge and he wanted no part of it.

"Okay," Leorio said, ducking into the small closet off the kitchen to grab a mop. His poor floors were going to be stained red at this rate.

When he came back with the mop, Kurapika was watching him with an odd expression. Before Leorio could ask, Kurapika stood up and reached out for the mop. "Let me do that."

Leorio held the mop out of Kurapika's reach, "No, you go wash up and get some clean clothes or else you're just going to keep dripping everywhere."

Kurapika looked down at his bloody pants and nodded, heading upstairs without a fuss. On his way, his tail snagged a towel and held it against his pants leg so it wouldn't drip. Leorio stared until Kurapika was out of sight, thinking about how useful it would be to have another limb like that. As he started mopping up the blood and cleaning off the coffee table, he imagined some of the ways he could put it to use. He was pretty sure Kurapika hadn't thought about using it in quite the same way Leorio was thinking about.

Leorio was finished cleaning by time Kurapika came back down in fresh clothes. They stared at each other for a long moment, neither of them knowing where to go from there. Leorio huffed and sat down on the couch. "We probably need to talk."

"I agree."

"I don't exactly like you being around here, but I can't get you to leave can I?"

"No. There's no other place I trust to stay."

"Even though your revenge guy might come back to find you?" Shit, that put Leorio in danger too, didn't it?

Kurapika shook his head. "He has no reason to hunt me down. This place is safe from him."

"Okay." That at least eased some of Leorio's worry. "So I'm stuck with you." Leorio sighed and leaned back against the couch. He didn't like it, especially with that shrine downstairs, but he'd rather not physically fight over it again. "What have you been doing these past few weeks? Other than skulking around."

Kurapika huffed and crossed his arms. "Mostly I've been reading from your library, trying to catch up on the last sixty years through your encyclopedias. I try heading into the city now and again but it's hard to get around when everything is so foreign. It's so bright and loud it gives me a headache every time I try."

"Yeah, I don't doubt that. It's got to be one hell of a culture shock. Wait… how are you getting around town?" Leorio leaned forward and studied Kurapika. No matter how he looked at the guy, there was no way Kurapika would be able to hide his wings.

"I… walk?"

Leorio waved his words away. "No, no, I mean how do people not take one look at you and freak? I think I would have noticed news sightings of a bat boy."

Kurapika leveled a flat look at Leorio and with a slight shimmer his wings and tail disappeared.

Leorio stared at Kurapika, getting up and walking over to wave his hand where Kurapika's wings were a moment before, but all he felt was air. The slits in the back of the shirt were gone as well. Kurapika was unimpressed as he took a step away to look at Leorio. "It's called glamour, a type of shapeshifting. How did you think fae hid?"

"I can't say I gave it much thought. So, are your wings just gone? What about the injury?" Leorio leaned to the side to try and get another look but Kurapika kept turning away. With another faint shimmer, the wings and tail came back.

"They're not gone, they're just… hidden. The wound is still there as well."

"Hidden? But I couldn't even feel them!"

"I don't know enough about glamour theoretics to explain it, and I doubt you'd understand it anyway without fundamental knowledge of magic."

Magic. Of course it was magic. He sat back down on the couch and raised his hands in surrender. "Okay fine, I won't ask. So you've just been trying to understand this new world right? No attacking people? No plans of hurting anyone?"

Kurapika's expression soured and Leorio had a feeling that he was holding back a growl. "No, I haven't attacked anyone and I don't plan on it. I simply want to be able to navigate this world more easily, that's all I'm asking of you. I'm not going to do whatever terrible things you're thinking of."

Leorio supposed it was fair for Kurapika to get angry, he was after all insinuating that Kurapika was some kind of bad guy. Maybe Leorio had misjudged him, he didn't seem too bad, a little uptight maybe but nice enough. Then again, there was still the issue of the disembodied eyes in his basement. "What about the eyes?"

Kurapika tensed up but it seemed more defensive than offensive. "Those are personal, and I seriously doubt what you show me about this intelligent technology will help me when it comes to them."

That wasn't totally reassuring but he had a point. All Leorio could teach him was basic internet and phone things, he'd have to go digging to learn how to track people down. Kurapika would learn on his own sooner or later, there wasn't too much harm in helping him now, was there? Who was he kidding? He'd already made up his mind.

"Alright, I'll help teach you some things about," Leorio chuckled, "intelligent technology, but you promise you'll behave and not bring anything bad back here." He pointed to Kurapika with narrowed eyes, going for intimidating. Judging by Kurapika's expression, it wasn't very effective.

"I'll behave yes, and if you're worried about me bringing things back here does that mean I can stay?"

Leorio's finger fell as he considered that. When had he decided to let him stay in his house? "I guess, but if you're going to be living here my room is off limits and you're going to be helping out with chores."

Kurapika smiled slightly. "I already had been."

Had he? Leorio had wondered why things seemed to stay clean when Kurapika had been around. "Oh. Well okay, good. It's late so let's get some rest and I'll show you how to work a phone in the morning." Leorio stood up and stretched, wondering what exactly he'd gotten himself into. 


	7. Chapter 7

"No no, you have to press with your finger, not your nail." Leorio said as Kurapika poked the phone screen with a claw for the third time that morning.

Kurapika huffed, "The nail would be more accurate than my finger."

"Yeah but your finger has an electrical charge. If they let nails work then any pressure would work and keeping it in your pocket would be a nightmare," Leorio said.

"I suppose you're right, but it's still aggravating." Kurapika wasn't truly paying much attention to Leorio, too busy trying to navigate the phone's various menus. Leorio had expected teaching a sixty year old how to use a smart phone would be difficult, but Kurapika was a quick learner. He asked the right questions, listened to the answers, and aside from a few quirks like the nail thing, actually remembered how to do things the first time around.

It was odd, sitting close to Kurapika and talking as if nothing had ever happened between them. It felt like inviting a classmate over, only with more inhuman features. Leorio could feel Kurapika's wing brush against him occasionally when Kurapika shifted, and not to mention the tail flicking on the floor. It was actually adorable, when Kurapika was frustrated or concentrating, his tail would twitch like a cat's. Leorio wondered if he purred.

"This little device is truly amazing. Television wasn't even in color back then." Kurapika said, watching a video of Gon and Kon running around. Leorio smiled at the screen, missing the kid.

"The quality of video can be better than that actually, almost as if you're really there."

Kurapika stared down at the screen and swiped the video, starting another with Gon at the beach. "Is this Gon or Killua?"

"That's Gon." Leorio answered automatically before the question caught up to him. He tensed up and gave Kurapika a sharp look. "How do you know their names?"

Kurapika lifted his head and stared at Leorio. "You told me. That first day when you were changing my bandages you talked about them."

"… Oh." Leorio ducked his head and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, I completely forgot about that. But yeah, that's Gon, my little cousin."

Kurapika studied the video as Gon went running and catapulted himself at Leorio in the surf. "He looks like a handful."

"God you have no idea," Leorio chuckled, watching himself toss Gon into the waves.

They watched a few more videos, Leorio pointing out Killua when he showed up. He had plenty to watch, Mito constantly sending him more. Much like that first day he found himself talking about Gon and Killua without really thinking about it. They got into so much that he had endless stories to tell. In the middle of one, he caught Kurapika staring at him.

"Sorry, am I boring you? I kind of got carried away." Leorio smiled sheepishly. Kurapika shook his head as if to clear it and then firmer to say no.

"It's fine. You obviously care about them." Kurapika paused the video and with a bit of hesitation managed to navigate back to the home screen of the phone. "So, is that all on this? Phone, letters, TV, radio, photo album, there can't be much more right?"

Leorio laughed and directed him to opening a game. "There is so much more, I haven't even shown you the games or the internet."

"The what?" Kurapika said, not even looking up from the phone as the colorful game menu popped up. He looked completely enthralled, like he'd never seen anything like it before. Which of course he hadn't.

"Let's just start with the games." Leorio explained basically how the game worked and let Kurapika figure out the rest. It was fascinating watching Kurapika play, the time gap was obvious. Things that came naturally to Leorio, such as swiping to move or collecting the tokens were foreign to Kurapika. He kept trying to tilt the phone to move and he'd jump when a loud sound would play or something would happen fast on screen. Kurapika's tail was twitching like crazy and he'd hunched over the phone as he concentrated wholly on what he was doing. He didn't ask for help, just kept restarting the game when he failed.

Leorio smiled, amused and a little amazed. For someone who had never seen a video game before Kurapika was doing incredibly well. It didn't take him long to stop avoiding the tokens, though he still tilted the phone as he moved. When he died after his best run, he huffed and leaned back.

"This is insane. Nothing like this was even thought of back then."

"This is nothing, and I mean that. There are video games, which is what they're called by the way, but there are games that look realistic. There are some that make you feel like you're in them."

Kurapika studied Leorio's face. "You're serious."

Leorio laughed. "Yeah. We'll deal with those later though, what you're going to want to know about is the internet."

"What is that? I've heard it said before but I can't figure out what people mean. It's some kind of information system?"

"That is basically what it is. Okay, let's explain it like this." Leorio shifted back so he could look at Kurapika better. "Imagine a library that any and every one can access at all times."

"Okay." Kurapika nodded, obviously not grasping the scale.

"I mean anyone. You, me, everyone in the city, everyone in the next city, everyone in Japan. Everyone."

"That's… I'd say impossible but I'm not sure what's impossible anymore." Kurapika looked down at the phone in his hand, the title screen of the game still going.

"I don't blame you for being skeptical. So this library, anyone can write whatever they want and put it there, and anyone can come in and read it. At any time."

"That sounds amazing. Anyone able to share their experience and knowledge with everyone else?"

"It is amazing, but it's also a steaming pile of garbage." At Kurapika's confused look, Leorio waved his hand and smiled. "I mean that because people who only want to hurt others can post their thoughts, or people completely ignorant on topics can toss their two cents in. It's a whirlwind of thought that can be hard to navigate. But! If you want to know something all you have to do is ask." Leorio took the phone and opened the internet browser. "Let's see when the internet was invented." He showed Kurapika the search box and typed the question in.

Kurapika stared as the answer showed up. "Who answered you so fast?"

Leorio couldn't help but laugh. "No one, it's automatic. Think of it like a librarian that's read everything, she looks up keywords in your question and directs you to that book."

"Okay… I think I get it. So it can answer anything?" If Leorio didn't know what Kurapika was searching for, he'd have been charmed by that hopeful look. If he was being honest, he still was.

"Not everything, no. Personal details of people won't be accessible, nor would their locations. It's more a huge encyclopedia than a phone book."

Kurapika's face fell but not as much as Leorio had expected. "That makes sense, so I just ask a question here?" Kurapika took the phone from Leorio and tapped the search box. They spent the next few hours surfing the internet, a phrase that confused Kurapika to no end. Once Kurapika seemed to get the hang of it, Leorio dug out a laptop and started the whole process over again.

Over the next few days they developed a rhythm between Leorio's schoolwork and teaching Kurapika. When Leorio came home from classes, he'd answer any questions Kurapika might have and help fix whatever he'd broken on the laptop. Viruses he'd expected, the screen flipped upside down he had not. That one turned into a nice learning experience for the both of them.

After showing Kurapika something new, Leorio would either head out or settle in the library window seat to do homework while Kurapika sat at the table and read on the laptop. After dinner they'd usually retreat to their rooms for the night but sometimes Kurapika would rope Leorio into showing him something else.

Leorio had to admit he enjoyed teaching Kurapika, not just because he was a good student but because he was nice to be around. His sense of humor was dry and always came out of nowhere, never failing to make Leorio laugh. Him being handsome was a plus.

"Leorio, this is wrong." Kurapika said one day while they were sitting in the library.

Leorio looked up from his book to find Kurapika looking at his laptop like it was a puzzle needing solving. "What's wrong?"

"This article in the encyclopedia, it's not just wrong it's flat out lies." Kurapika narrowed his eyes and scrolled down the page, reading whatever had caught his interest.

Leorio set his things aside and came around the table to look and started laughing when he saw the Wikipedia logo. Kurapika looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny? You haven't even read it yet."

"I don't have to, that website speaks for itself. Wikipedia is both the best and worst place to get information." Leorio chuckled as he returned to his seat, picking back up where he left off.

"Why is that? If the articles are wrong it can't be a very good information site." Kurapika abandoned the laptop to watch Leorio, his focus turned completely to the problem at hand. That's one thing Leorio liked the most and the least about Kurapika. Once something caught his interest he'd dig until he got to the bottom of it.

"Wikipedia is an encyclopedia that anyone can edit. There's a great deal of people that keep going through to make sure things are right, but anyone can write whatever they want," Leorio said, flipping through his book.

"… So I can correct this, right?" Kurapika turned back to the computer with a thoughtful expression, already scrolling through the page again.

Leorio snorted, "Sure, if you want. But if you try to do that with every wrong article you'll be there forever."

"But it's wrong," Kurapika said, as if that settled the matter.

Leorio shook his head and spent the next few hours stealthily watching as Kurapika got more and more agitated. Kurapika would mumble under his breath about how wrong things were, genuinely affronted about it. Leorio couldn't help but laugh when Kurapika finally closed his laptop, a look of disgusted defeat on his face.

"I give up, you're right. I'll be here all day if I continue."

"Told you so." Leorio held up his book to hide his laughter.

Thankfully Kurapika learned his lesson and stopped getting so upset over things online, though comment sections still made him rage. Sitting in the library with Kurapika quickly became Leorio's favorite part of his new routine. It was nice, sitting in the quiet with someone, the only sounds paper turning or keys tapping. Kurapika would occasionally interrupt Leorio to ask a question or make a comment, but honestly Leorio was getting more studying done than he'd planned. Something about having someone else there made him focus more. When he was stuck on a problem he'd find himself watching Kurapika. The soft light from the window always made him look so gentle, so unreal, like something out of a storybook. Was it weird that Leorio already knew Kurapika brushed his hair behind his ear when something caught his interest? More than once Kurapika caught him staring, but Kurapika either bought that Leorio wanted to ask a question, or he didn't care as much as he used to.

Leorio came home early one day, half because his last class was canceled, and half to see what Kurapika got up to when he thought he was alone. Leorio was not disappointed. The moment he walked through the door he heard what was obviously cursing coming from the game room, though the language was foreign to him. Leorio crept toward the door and peeked around the corner to see Kurapika playing one of the arcade machines, cursing every few minutes as he died. His wings were splayed out slightly and his tail was almost thrashing behind him. Leorio hadn't seen him this mad since those first few days.

He expected to feel threatened, like he was near a beast that could turn on him at any minute, but he didn't. All he felt was pure amusement as Kurapika grit his teeth and leaned in closer as if that would help him win. Leorio couldn't decide if he'd gotten used to whatever monster mojo Kurapika threw off, or if Kurapika chose when it happened. Kurapika growled and never mind, that still sent chills down Leorio's spine.

As the game over sound played, Kurapika threw his hands in the air and walked in a circle of frustration. When he spied Leorio watching him, he jumped an inch or so straight into the air like a startled cat.

"What are you doing here?" Kurapika said, smoothing down his shirt as if he hadn't just thrown a mini fit.

"I live here." At Kurapika's glare, Leorio laughed, "My class got canceled so I came home early. I see you've learned how to play my arcade cabinets."

Kurapika let out a long breath and looked over at the game which still had a game over screen. "I suppose."

"You're not any good at it are you?" Leorio laughed, coming around to restart the game.

Kurapika tensed up and narrowed his eyes at the screen as Leorio effortlessly navigated the first level. "Considering the circumstances I believe I'm doing well."

"Then all those angry words were because you were winning?" Leorio grinned at Kurapika who's shoulders raised ever so slightly.

"Be quiet, you yell at the television when you're only watching something so I think I'm entitled to a bit of yelling."

Leorio laughed, "I'm just teasing you. What language was that anyway?"

There was silence. Leorio looked over at Kurapika who seemed to not be seeing anything, staring down at the floor. "Kurapika?"

Either his voice or the game's death sound snapped Kurapika out of whatever trance he'd been in. "Sorry, I was trying to remember." An obvious lie, but one that Leorio didn't call him out on. "It's some ancient language, no one speaks it anymore."

It seemed like more than just some language, but Leorio doubted Kurapika would appreciate him digging. "How many languages can you speak?"

"Around 30 I think."

"Are you kidding me?! I knew you were a nerd but damn."

"A what?"

"Nothing, never mind." Leorio reset the game and moved away, gesturing for Kurapika to take his place. "What've you been stuck on? Maybe I can help."

"You only want to show off," Kurapika said, returning to the machine anyway. Leorio scoffed as the first level's music started playing

"What, me? Of course not!" He couldn't keep a straight face as Kurapika turned a deadpan look at him, keeping eye contact as the death sound played.

Leorio grinned, "You just died."

"You're so helpful." Kurapika turned back to the game. He wasn't bad at the first two levels, though he did struggle here and there. It was the third level with a new enemy that he failed at. Kurapika hissed as he died. "That thing, that thing is impossible."

Leorio laughed, "You have to come at it from behind."

"I figured that out thank you, but how do you do that when it keeps turning around?" Kurapika was hunched over the machine, concentrating on avoiding the little enemies.

"You have to turn your back on them, they won't kill you from behind."

Kurapika quietly huffed in disbelief but tried it anyway. Just like Leorio had said, the little enemy didn't attack and Kurapika was able to easily kill it. Kurapika stared at the screen and then looked over at Leorio. "How was I supposed to figure that out?"

"Through lots of trial and error, and a sack full of quarters. This game in particular was a quarter eater back in the day." Leorio knocked on the side of the cabinet with his knuckles, a fond look on his face. "I watched plenty kids spend a mini fortune on these games when I was little."

"You didn't play?" Kurapika said as he turned back to the game. Now that he knew how to deal with the enemies, he made pretty good progress. Leorio couldn't wait until he hit level five.

"Not until I was older, I didn't have the money to waste." Those were hard times, pinching pennies, tiny meals, collecting cans off the side of the road in hopes of recycling them for money just to get something sweet. He hadn't been unhappy though, he'd had his friends and plenty of abandoned lots to play around in. The things a bunch of young boys could get into with little adult supervision was mind boggling. It was a wonder any of them survived.

That thought sent a familiar pain through his chest as he remembered his best friend, his whole reason for becoming a doctor in the first place. He wondered what he'd be doing right now if his friend had never died. Probably not spending time with a magical fae person. He let himself get lost in thought as he stared at the screen, reliving the memories of his childhood and his friend's brilliant smile.

A loud thunk brought him back to reality as Kurapika kicked the cabinet in frustration. "I'm going to destroy it." He hissed.

"Hey, hey! No hurting anything!" Leorio said seriously, lightly pushing Kurapika away from the poor arcade machine. As the death sound echoed again he felt Kurapika tense under his hand.

"Take it back," Kurapika said in a strained voice, not looking at Leorio.

"What? Take what back?" Leorio tried figure out what Kurapika meant but was cut off as Kurapika shoved his way roughly past him and out the front door.

Leorio stared after him, thoroughly confused over what had just happened. Kurapika had been upset and for the life of him Leorio couldn't think of a reason why. Because he wouldn't let him destroy the arcade cabinet? That wasn't like Kurapika.

Leorio went about his day, figuring that Kurapika would come back when he wanted to. It took a couple of days, but Leorio came home to find him in the library like nothing had happened. When Leorio asked what had been wrong, Kurapika skirted around the issue so much that Leorio dropped it. Maybe it was a fae thing.

To ease some of the awkwardness, Leorio declared that weekend a movie marathon. Kurapika wasn't interested at first, but once they started he didn't take his eyes off the screen. Leorio started with realistic movies, things set in the real world, before moving on to classic fantasy and sci-fi. The look of pure amazement on Kurapika's face as spaceships and laser swords flew around on screen was vastly more entertaining than the movie itself.

Over the next two weeks Kurapika became proficient enough in technology that he no longer had to ask for help. Leorio had honestly expected Kurapika to leave once he understood enough, but he showed no sign of going anywhere. Instead, he made himself at home, claiming one of the bedrooms upstairs instead of heading back down to his shrine room. Leorio had given him some money and he'd buy small things to make himself more comfortable. Things like new clothes and an old fashioned tea pot instead of using the modern one because he said it made a difference.

They got into a habit of watching a movie every night and they stopped retreating to their rooms after dinner. Leorio managed to rope him into playing some video games but most often they'd just talk. Kurapika didn't reveal much about himself or his past, but that was okay with Leorio. Just listening to his voice made those talks worthwhile.

Leorio had never thought he'd be okay with a roommate, not after spending his whole childhood with minimum privacy, but living with Kurapika was nice. It came easily, and while they did have their arguments they were able to move past them. Leorio was _happy_ , and he prayed things stayed that way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I totally forgot to upload this, sorry guys  
> Also I am reading each and every one of your comments and doing a happy wiggle dance at them all. You guys make me blush~


	8. Chapter 8

One Friday as Leorio was driving home from hanging out with Zepile, he could make out someone sitting on the front porch. Thinking it was Kurapika waiting on him, he smiled, but when the person stood up his heart dropped to his stomach.

"Hey Leorio!" Gon called, waving wildly before jumping from the porch to come meet him. Why was Gon here? How was he here? Leorio scrambled out of the car and put on his best smile as his cousin launched himself into his arms. He twirled around a few times before putting Gon back down, their customary greeting.

"Hey Gon!" Leorio greeted warmly, even with the small amount of panic he was feeling.

"Whoa. You look awesome!" There were practically stars in his eyes as he looked up at Leorio.

It took Leorio a long moment to understand what was so special about his appearance but then it clicked. This would be the first time Gon saw him with his scar.

"Hell yeah I do, like some kind of rugged hero." Leorio posed with his hand on his chin while Gon grinned and nodded. "Did Mito send you this way?" He knew the answer, Mito would have warned him. How he wished he had a warning. What the hell was he going to do if Kurapika came waltzing in wings and all? Gon would be so thrilled but Leorio really didn't want his cousin to know about the magical side of the world. He and Mito had their hands full with him hunting cryptids and ghosts as it was, they didn't need him knowing the hunt was real.

Predictably, Gon looked down at the ground and scuffed his shoe into the dirt. "Not exactly. Mr. Baker gave me and Kon a ride up here."

At his name, the huge monster of a dog let out a thunderous bark and came running around the house. Leorio tensed up for a moment like he always did when that beast came barreling at him, but Kon was nothing more than a big sweetheart. Leorio gave the dog a good petting as he fixed Gon with a stern look.

"I'm guessing Mito doesn't know you're here?"

Gon hesitated a moment before looking up, determined. "Not yet, but I want to stay at least the weekend. You promised you'd let me explore the grounds!"

"Yeah I did, but I expected to know when you'd be here." Leorio knew his stern tone was undermined by the dog pushing against his legs and almost knocking him over, but there was no stopping Kon. He also knew that Gon was staying for the weekend, despite any of Mito's protests. He'd missed the little turd.

"Sorry, I wanted it to be a surprise." Gon gave him a sheepish smile and if Leorio hadn't already decided he could stay, that would have been the nail in the coffin. He just couldn't deny Gon when he looked like that.

Leorio grinned and shoved Kon away. "Well consider me surprised. It's great to see you, but you know you're getting yelled at by Mito right?"

The grin on the boy's face could rival the sun, he was absolutely not sorry for traveling several hours away from home without telling his aunt.

Leorio led him inside, absolutely not letting Kon in. That dog was infamous for destroying houses. As Gon called Mito, Leorio ducked into the library and game room to see if Kurapika was home. No sign of him thankfully. Leorio went around and tried to hide any trace of Kurapika under the guise of tidying up. Another thing he didn't need was Gon thinking he'd shacked up with someone. Mito would grill him for every detail and he was afraid he'd let something slip. He would just have to hope he'd be able to warn Kurapika before Gon saw him.

Honestly, there wasn't much to hide, Kurapika kept things neat and tidy and most of his things were in his room. Gon would probably be more suspicious at how clean things were than anything lying about.

Leorio grinned as he heard the unmistakable sound of Mito's yelling. Gon was getting an earful and Leorio was so, so glad it wasn't directed at him for once. He was still worried though, Kurapika could come back at any moment, wings on full display,

After assuring Mito that he didn't mind keeping Gon over the weekend and talking her out of grounding him for a year when he got home, Leorio helped Gon unpack in one of the rooms upstairs, hoping he wouldn't go snooping in Kurapika's room across the hall. He couldn't, however, keep his cousin from snooping everywhere else.

Leorio hated how perceptive Gon was.

"Why do you have a tea pot? You don't drink tea," he asked in the kitchen.

"Why do you have two laptops out?" he asked in the living room.

"Are you studying history too?" he asked in the library.

Everywhere he looked there were little traces left from his earlier hiding spree, things that were so commonplace that he hadn't noticed. He'd gotten so used to Kurapika's presence they were just background noise that was supposed to be there. Leorio deflected every question but Gon could tell something was up, though he didn't pry like a certain light haired friend of his would.

Leorio was feeling pretty good about the situation, all things considered. That is until Kurapika came walking into the living room while he and Gon watched a movie that'd recently came out. Leorio had a moment of pure panic until there was a slight shimmer and Kurapika's wings disappeared. Right, glamour, that was a thing he'd forgotten about.

Gon's eyes lit up, the movie well forgotten as he stood and grinned at Kurapika. "Hi there, I'm Gon!" Gon didn't mention the magic so Leorio was certain his cousin hadn't seen it. There would have been no doubt about it if he had.

Kurapika looked from Gon to Leorio a few times before smiling slightly. "Hello Gon, I'm Kurapika. I've heard a lot about you."

"That's because Leorio never stops talking."

"Hey!"

It had the intended effect of getting Kurapika to relax, that is until Gon kept speaking. "So it's weird that he didn't say anything about you. Are you his secret boyfriend?"

The way Kurapika's eyes went wide and how he quickly glanced at Leorio was enough confirmation for Gon. He laughed and spun around to face Leorio, fingers laced behind his back. "Leorio! You didn't tell me you were dating someone."

Leorio knew he was teasing, but Kurapika didn't and that honestly made it kind of funny. Leorio threw a look over Gon's head to Kurapika and grinned as he shrugged, "It must have slipped my mind."

"Living with someone slipped your mind, huh?" Gon asked, his eyes shining.

"Oh shut up," Leorio said, no heat behind the words.

Gon laughed, turning back to Kurapika to ask, "Are you a student too? Are you the one studying history?"

Kurapika shifted on his feet, looking back to Leorio as if he wasn't sure of what to say. "Yes. Leorio's been helping me study."

"Aww, that's sweet. I thought you hated helping people study." Gon looked over his shoulder grinning. He was reading too much into things but Leorio was sure he'd never convince him otherwise.

"Well, there are exceptions to every rule," Leorio said, running with it. If Gon was convinced they were dating, then trying to tell him otherwise would just increase the teasing. "It doesn't hurt that he's a quick learner." Leorio could feel Kurapika staring at him but he didn't look at him.

"If you'll help him study maybe you'll help me?" That teasing grin was replaced with a too innocent smile.

"You little brat, you came here to make me do your homework didn't you?" Leorio reached out to snag Gon's shirt but Gon danced out of the way and ran to hide behind Kurapika, sticking his tongue out at Leorio.

Kurapika immediately tensed and Gon backed off in a way that seemed natural, but Leorio knew his cousin had picked up on Kurapika's discomfort and was trying to remedy it.

Leorio laughed to help ease the mood, and was rewarded with Kurapika slowly relaxing. "You can't hide behind him Gon, I'll get you eventually and you will be doing your homework."

"Aw come on, I hate homework," Gon whined like he always did when school was involved. The kid was smart, just not when it came to book learning.

"Too bad. You can run around and play today but tomorrow we're sitting down and you're doing it," Leorio said sternly.

Gon stuck his tongue out at Leorio again before he walked over and flopped down on the couch. "Fine. Mister Kurapika, do you want to watch a movie with us?"

Kurapika started, not expecting to be addressed again. "Um."

Leorio waved him off. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

Even though Leorio couldn't see Gon's face, he knew he was looking up at Kurapika expectantly. Kurapika hesitated a moment before walking over and sitting next to Gon. Leorio couldn't help but smile as he skipped the movie back to where they'd been. Kurapika loved watching movies, he said it helped him catch up with what had been happening while he was out, but Leorio knew that was just an excuse.

Gon grinned through the rest of the movie and once it was over he jumped up and grabbed a game controller from under the TV. "Mister Kurapika, do you want to play a game with us?"

Leorio fought to keep the grin off his face, knowing how much video games riled Kurapika up. He was good at them, it's just when something didn't do what he wanted he got frustrated.

Kurapika glanced over at Leorio, frowned when he saw Leorio's face, and shook his head. "I think I'll pass."

Gon nodded, not put out in the slightest. "Maybe later! Leorio, I challenge you to a race!" Gon tossed one of the controllers to Leorio as he set up the game.

"You're on little man."

Leorio expected Kurapika to get up and wander off while they were playing, but he stayed to watch them. He was still a little tense, but the longer the game went on and the more enthusiastic Gon got, the more he relaxed. Leorio looked over to see him smiling at Gon's antics and his staring cost him the race.

Gon didn't stop trying to get Kurapika to play with them, but Kurapika kept declining. It didn't deter Gon, though after a while he called the game quits and dragged Leorio outside to play keep away with Kon. Kurapika watched as they headed out, keeping his seat on the couch. Leorio figured he'd head back up to his room and avoid them for the rest of the weekend. Kurapika was nice, but he didn't seem to be much of a people person.

Playing with Kon was both fun and terrifying. Running around and tossing a ball back and forth with Gon was a blast, but also having a huge monster dog chasing after him was as scary as hell. Around the fourth time he was tackled to the ground he called it quits and headed back toward the house as Gon kept playing.

To his surprise Kurapika was sitting on the back porch watching them. His gaze was trained solely on Kon and Leorio didn't blame him. He suspected that even in a world full of magical creatures, the massive dog chasing down his cousin was still exceptional.

Leorio sat down next to Kurapika at the patio table and watched Gon as he went tumbling under Kon for the umpteenth time. He turned to Kurapika who had a look of awe and maybe a bit of worry on his face.

"Don't worry, Kon is the biggest sweetheart," Leorio said.

"How did your cousin manage to tame a foxbear?" Kurapika said, not even giving Leorio a glance.

"A what?"

"A foxbear, it's a forest fae that is wild as the woods. I've never seen a tame one before. Especially one with an advanced glamour." Kurapika's impressed gaze turned to Gon. "Your cousin must be extraordinary."

"He is. Should uh, should I be worried that Kon's a fae?" It made a lot of sense actually. Kon had always been entirely too smart, too handy, too different. Mito always swore up and down Kon was half bear, and Leorio had always secretly believed it, but having it confirmed was something else entirely.

"If he's never attacked or hurt anyone then no. Foxbear are smart enough to know that humans would hurt them if they showed their real selves. This one must be incredibly loyal to Gon if he's willing to keep up its glamour at all times."

Leorio considered the two rolling around in the grass and smiled, "Yeah, that dog has always been by Gon's side since they were both small. Let me guess, foxbear live a good long time, right? Kon hasn't shown any sign of aging and he's gotta be at least seven or eight."

Kurapika laughed, "They live as long as humans do."

That was nice to know, Leorio had always dreaded the day Kon would die. It would kill Gon to lose his best friend like that. Leorio hadn't been around when Gon had found Kon, but Mito loved to tell the tale. She had thought it was a bear, and Leorio didn't blame her since for one, he was technically a bear, and two it wouldn't be the first or last time Gon brought home an honest to god bear. She almost tossed Kon out but Gon cried so hard he threw up so suddenly the family grew one bigger. Now that he thought about it, if Gon had seen Kon's true form, that might be where he got his fascination with cryptids.

Leorio and Kurapika sat in companionable silence as Gon ran around. Eventually Gon waved and yelled, "I'm going exploring!" before darting off toward the tree line.

Leorio laughed and shook his head. "That kid. Lord only knows what he's going to bring back."

"How long is he going to be staying?" Kurapika asked, finally turning to look at Leorio.

"Just the weekend. I would have warned you but he came down here without telling anyone. One of his neighbors gave him a ride."

"Should I leave until he goes home?"

Leorio shook his head. "You don't have to. He's already convinced we're dating."

"When exactly did we start dating, Leorio?" Kurapika raised an eyebrow. Thankfully it didn't seem to make him uncomfortable.

"When Gon mentioned it. He's just teasing us but trust me, play along or else he's going to get worse."

"Don't expect a kiss out of this." Kurapika pinned him with a look that said Kurapika was expecting something along those lines.

"What! Me, cheating the system for a kiss? I'm insulted." Leorio sniffed and put his nose in the air, grinning when Kurapika laughed.

"You're ridiculous is what you are. You have told me about your past dates you know. I think I have a good grip on what you would and would not do if the opportunity presented itself."

"So you were listening. I always figured you tuned me out." Those late night conversations about Leorio's love life had always been very one sided, with Kurapika mostly reading through them as Leorio talked. Even if he hadn't been listening it had been nice to talk to someone about whatever came to mind.

"I try, you're just very loud."

Leorio opened his mouth to protest but Kurapika was already standing to head back into the house. "Oh, you might want to go stop Gon before he pokes that snake with a stick."

Leorio's head whipped around to where Gon had disappeared to so fast his neck hurt. Kurapika's eyesight must be much better than his because all he saw was his cousin looking around on the ground, no doubt for a suitable stick. He didn't see a snake, but he trusted Kurapika and wouldn't doubt for a second his cousin would do something that stupid.

"Gon! Whatever you're doing stop it!"

After wrangling the stick away from an unrepentant Gon and shooing the snake away, Leorio thought it would be prudent to follow his troublemaker as he wandered the tree line. There wasn't much of interest, old abandoned fencing and a large run down well at the back of the property. Leorio already knew Gon would be back out there so he drilled it into Gon's head that he should not, under any circumstances, try to climb down that well. The disappointment in Gon's eyes was more than enough to tell Leorio he made the right decision.

When they came back into the house, it was a surprise to find a platter full of sandwiches on the kitchen table. Leorio felt his chest warm at the thought of Kurapika making them for him and Gon without being asked. He was a little disappointed that Kurapika hadn't stuck around, but he couldn't blame him. Gon was a handful for anyone to be around, much less someone with a big secret to keep.

For the rest of the day Kurapika stayed out of sight and Gon made the most of his time before being forced to do homework by playing video games all evening. In the morning though, Leorio dragged him into the library and forced him to sit at the table to actually work.

As funny as it was to watch poor Gon's brain explode with information on the regular, Leorio didn't take any pleasure in making his cousin suffer. He wouldn't do Gon's homework for him, but he did sit down with him and try and teach the kid something.

It was a long and tiring process.

As Leorio was trying, for the fourth time, to explain a math problem to Gon, he noticed Kurapika standing in the doorway watching them. It may have been a trick of the light, but Leorio swore Kurapika blushed slightly at being caught. Kurapika didn't show any embarrassment as he came into the room and sat on Gon's other side.

"Let me try and help you," Kurapika said, pulling Gon's book toward himself.

Gon stretched his arms across the table before letting his head thump against the wood. "Can we please take a break?"

"You've only been doing this for an hour, no," Leorio said. He couldn't blame the kid though, he wanted a break too. Teaching Gon was… an exercise in patience. Kurapika smiled to himself as he skimmed the textbook, finally turning to Gon once he understood what they were trying to do.

Leorio propped his head up on his hand and watched as Kurapika took over. The sun shone through the window, making the room bright and warm, glinting off of Kurapika's golden hair as his soft voice filled the room. Gon seemed to be catching on, at least more than when Leorio was trying to teach him. Kurapika would smile and praise him when he got something right, his smile growing when Gon was able to do it without help. Kurapika's eyes would shine as he explained the problems, the look of interest and enjoyment suiting him far more than his normal detachment.

"What?" Kurapika asked, shaking Leorio out of his reverie. He just realized that he'd been staring for the past who knows how long. It was getting to be a habit.

Leorio leaned back in his chair and coughed, the heat on his face having nothing to do with the sunlight. "I was just admiring your teaching skills. You're much better at this than I am."

Gon was grinning ear to ear as he looked up at Leorio. "He really is." That twinkle in his eyes was less mischief and more of him reading too far into things.

Leorio shoved down on Gon's head as he stood up, ruffling his hair for good measure. "Fine, I can see I'm not needed here." He poked his nose in the air and sniffed, breaking the pose when Gon laughed. "You are doing great though, Gon. I'll get some food ready so you can take a break."

Leorio retreated into the kitchen, going about making some sandwiches. Leorio knew Kurapika was attractive as hell, knew he liked him quite a lot, but he'd never really considered dating him. For one, Leorio seriously doubted Kurapika would be interested in him, and  two, the guy was most likely a murderer if those eyes were any indication. It was so easy to forget that, or if he was being honest with himself, so easy to ignore it. Kurapika seemed so… normal. Sure he had started off terrifying but he'd also been hurt and defensive. The guy he'd been living with though, he was as normal as they come. Then again, weren't most serial killers supposed to be normal and charming? No matter how attractive the guy was, Leorio was going to stay hands off just in case. It'd be his luck that someone would track Kurapika back to him and he'd get himself arrested or killed because of it.

It was hard to keep that in mind as he brought the plate of sandwiches into the library and found Kurapika and Gon laughing. The scene was so normal, so sweet, it was near impossible to for him to believe Kurapika was some kind of monster.

As the day went on it got harder and harder to try and reconcile the man he was seeing in front of him with someone who murdered and stole people's eyes. Gon convinced Kurapika to stay downstairs with them and to play some games, igniting that competitive streak Leorio knew Kurapika had. The kind way he treated Gon, the way he got frustrated, how he laughed, he couldn't be as bad as Leorio thought, right? He caught himself staring more as the day went on, to which he'd get an amused look from Gon or an eyebrow raise from Kurapika.

The end of the day had them all piled on the couch with Gon in the middle, watching a movie marathon. At least he could finally focus on the movie instead of constantly staring at Kurapika like some lovesick creep.

Predictably, Gon conked out well before the last movie was over. Leorio chuckled and picked him up, carrying him to his room while Kurapika cleaned up.

As he reentered the living room, the sight took his breath away. The lighting was low, only one lamp still on behind Kurapika as he bent down to pick up a pillow. His hair slid from behind his ear, a golden curtain framing his face which had such a gentle happy expression that it made Leorio's chest hurt. It wasn't much different than seeing Kurapika pick up on other days, but that in itself lent to the moment. He'd gotten used to this, seeing Kurapika in his house, having him around to talk to, to argue with. Nothing had changed, but maybe something had shifted.

Kurapika looked up at him, still soft and happy and he laughed lowly. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Leorio wanted to say something. What, he wasn't sure. Stay? Please don't leave and do anything horrible. In the end he couldn't get the words out, so all he did was smile. "I'm just happy. Gon showing up usually does that."

"Yeah, he's such a sweet kid," Kurapika said, brushing his hair back behind his ear. Leorio traced the movement with his eyes, wanting to do that for him, wanting to be closer. Instead, he merely nodded and helped Kurapika pick up the rest of the mess from the day.

"He honestly scared me when he showed up unannounced, I could just imagine him walking in on you and freaking out." Leorio chuckled, picturing the flurry of questions and movement had Gon seen Kurapika with his wings out.

"He seems the type that would simply accept it."

"Oh yeah he would, but not before asking a million questions and poking and prodding you. He'd want to know how your wings worked, what you were, if there were more of you, what you called yourself. He's a tenacious brat when he wants to know something."

Kurapika was quiet as they continued to put things back into their place. How a single kid could cause so much mess was beyond Leorio. The quiet stretched past what Leorio thought was normal and when he glanced back up Kurapika's gaze was a million miles away.

"You okay?" Leorio asked, pausing in his cleaning.

Kurapika glanced over at him. "… Yes. I'm fine. It's just… one of those questions hit closer to home than I would have liked."

Leorio thought back, trying to remember what he'd said but nothing stood out to him. He was called a fae and of course there were more of them, right?

Kurapika noticed his confusion and shook his head, dismissing the question before it came. After a moment he said, "I never did tell you what I was, did I?"

"What do you mean? You're a fae right?"

"Yes, but I'm a specific type of fae. Like some are dragons or werewolves, I'm a Kurta." The way he said it, as if the word itself was precious, made Leorio feel as if it was a secret he was being entrusted with. The fact that Kurapika rarely ever shared any information about himself made the feeling stronger.

"A Kurta. Are they all as gorgeous as you?" Leorio smiled, and while Kurapika returned it there was something behind his gaze that seemed so sad.

They lapsed into quiet and once they had picked up enough, they bid each other goodnight. Leorio stared at Kurapika's back as he headed to his room. Kurapika glanced back once at the foot of the stairs and smiled at Leorio before disappearing.

Yeah, Leorio had never considered dating Kurapika before, but he definitely was now.


	9. Chapter 9

Once Gon had been safely deposited in the hands of his very, very irate aunt, Leorio headed home with the hope of wooing Kurapika in his heart. He'd like to think he already had a foot in the door with helping him learn and adjust, but he wasn't totally sure how Kurapika felt about him. The guy was hard to read most the time.

All the cliché plans he had disappeared once he got home since he couldn't woo someone who wasn't there. Leorio chalked it up to Kurapika needing some alone time after dealing with Gon, but as the days went by and there still wasn't a sign of Kurapika he started getting worried. Had his staring chased him off? Was he hurt? Did he get attacked again? Leorio even went down into Kurapika's shrine room just to make sure the eyes were still there. He felt a little disgusted with himself that the disembodied eyes brought him relief.

Almost a week later, Kurapika still hadn't shown up, but Leorio did get the phone call he'd been expecting from Mito. He groaned as he answered, already knowing how this was going to go down.

"And why haven't I heard about this boyfriend of yours?" she said the moment he picked up.

"Because he's not actually my boyfriend, he needed a place to stay and I'm renting a room out to him." It wasn't a lie at all, though he hoped to change that first part soon.

"Uh-huh, you know you can't lie to Gon about those things, if he thinks you two are dating then either you are or you need to be."

Leorio laughed. "Isn't that the truth, little shit has a sixth sense doesn't he? I would like to date Kurapika I just haven't tried yet."

"That isn't like you at all, usually you're all over the people you like," she said it so matter-of-factly that he almost took offense to it.

"What the hell does that mean? I'm a perfect gentleman and give the objects of my affection all the space they— stop laughing."

Mito's laughter slowly came to a stop, though she still chuckled as she said, "I know, I'm sorry, but I do remember your last summer here you know."

"I was young and stupid."

"You were nineteen."

"Yeah, young. Anyway, we just got started on the wrong foot. Things have changed a lot since we first met." Everything had changed since they first met. It felt like ages ago but it'd only been a few months.

"I'm glad things are working out for you. Speaking of getting off on the wrong foot, whatever happened to that guy that attacked you? Did he leave you alone after that?"

"Um…" How did he tell her they were the same guy? He didn't feel like getting yelled at today. "Everything worked out great between me and him, no need to worry."

"Gon said your scar was pretty bad, right under your eye. You didn't tell me it was that serious." It was odd to hear someone worried and chiding at the same time, but Mito perfected it.

"It's not, I swear. He didn't mean to get me that bad, he was just trying to scare me. We've worked it out, I promise."

"Mmm…" Mito sounded like she wasn't sure. "Okay, I trust you. Now," Leorio could hear the grin in her voice as she said, "tell me about Kurapika."

Leorio groaned, though he couldn't help but smile. He knew she was going to grill him, but he'd hoped she'd gotten distracted enough to forget. "He's great. Handsome, funny, hardworking. You'd like him a lot."

"Those are so vague, give me details!" Leorio could picture Mito cradling the phone, expectant look on her face. She always got like that when she was gossiping with her friends, it was charming as hell. Not as charming now that it was turned on him though.

"No," Leorio laughed, "you'll just have to meet him yourself."

"You're no fun! Fine, bring him over one weekend for dinner."

"If I can, he's not the biggest people person. I might convince him to go see Gon though, Kurapika liked Gon a lot." It had surprised Leorio how much they got along. Though then again, was it so surprising when Gon was involved? "Not sure how he'd feel about Killua, they'd either get along or hate each other."

"I haven't seen Killua in a few days actually. Gon said he came by earlier but left in a hurry shortly after. I worry about him sometimes. I wish he'd just move in."

"You still don't know where he stays when he's not there?" Where Killua lived had always been the biggest mystery. Gon had tried to tail him home a few times but never could keep up, which was surprising considering Gon could track a deer by the smallest of traces.

"No," Mito sighed. "He never talks about his home life either, but he's always clean and well fed so I don't think he's homeless."

"I wouldn't worry about it too much, he can take care of himself. That kid is tough as nails. Don't tell him I said that." Leorio would never get caught dead complementing the brat, he had an image to uphold.

Mito laughed. "I won't. You tell Kurapika to come by soon okay? I really want to meet him."

"More like you want to ask him a million questions. You're going to scare him off."

"If he can handle you he can handle me." At Leorio's protest she laughed and said, "Love you Leorio, bye!"

Leorio glared at the phone, but it didn't last long. Talking to Mito made him happier, she had always had that effect on him. He leaned back and looked out the window for a moment, taking a bit of a break before he went back to studying. He idly wondered when Kurapika was coming home, but put that out of his mind for now. He didn't want to get sad after his chat with Mito.

Less than an hour later, loud knocking startled Leorio out of his studying and he scrambled to the door to see who it was, praying it wasn't a bloody Kurapika again. Once he opened the door, a head of white hair shoved past him and stalked his way into the living room. It took Leorio's brain a few seconds to register that Killua had barged into his home without a single hello.

"Killua?" Leorio said as he followed him into the living room. What was he doing here? He'd been at Mito's just a few hours ago, he had to have come straight from there to here, but why? Killua was tense, stock still and looking around the room as if it was personally offending him.

"Where's Kurapika?" he asked, turning around to pin Leorio with a serious gaze.

"Why? This a social visit?" Leorio said sarcastically. What the hell was going on here?

"It doesn't matter why, I need to see him." Killua stalked his way further into the house, shoulders set and hands curled into fists.

Leorio followed after him. "I'm pretty sure it does matter since it looks like you're ready to deck him."

Killua peeked down the hallway to the game room and dismissed Leorio's words with a wave, "I'm not going to hit him." Killua started down the hall but Leorio darted in front of him and blocked his path.

"No, you're not. Why are you here? How do you even know Kurapika?" If Gon had told him it would have been just today and he couldn't think of anything Gon could say that would make Killua hightail it all the way to Leorio's house.

"Don't worry about it," Killua said as he tried to duck around Leorio.

Leorio blocked him again and raised his voice. "I am worried about it! You somehow travel three hours to confront someone you shouldn't even know, of course I'm worried! What the hell are you doing here Killua?"

Leorio's yelling didn't even phase the kid, he just grit his teeth and leaned forward to yell right back. "It doesn't concern you!"

"This is my house and Kurpaika's my friend! Of course it concerns me!"

"Do your friends normally try to kill you?" Killua hissed, drawing a line across his face in a mirror of Leorio's scar.

Leorio automatically reached up to touch his face. "That was during an argument and we've worked it out." Technically they hadn't, they'd just ignored it until the problem went away. "And how did you know he was the one who attacked me?"

"Of course it was him," Killua said, as if that explained everything. "He almost took your eye and you just let him stay? You let Gon around him!"

"Because Kurapika isn't dangerous! Is that what this is about? You're worried about Gon?" That would be cute if it wasn't so out of the blue and aggressive.

"You're in danger too! Do you even know what he is? What he's capable of?"

The fact that Killua knew Kurapika was a fae hit Leorio over the head and had him stunned for a moment. "How the hell do you know what he is?"

A soft voice interrupted them before Killua could reply. "Because he's a fae too."

They both whirled around to the entrance to the dining room where Kurapika stood, not bothering with his glamour. Killua turned to face him head on, standing rigid almost as if he wanted to bolt. In which direction Leorio wasn't sure.

Kurapika took a slow step into the room, eyes locked onto Killua who straightened up. "What is it that you want with me?"

The air in the room became unbearably tense as the two stared each other down. Killua glared and took a moment to carefully choose his words before answering, "I want you gone, you're too dangerous."

"I'm not going anywhere," Kurapika said coldly. A shiver went down Leorio's spine at Kurapika's tone. He hadn't felt this in danger around Kurapika since those first few days where he thought he was going to be killed. It was a little more bearable now that the feeling was directed at Killua, but that rubbed him the wrong way. A kid shouldn't have to deal with that feeling.

"Hey, let's calm down," Leorio said cautiously. The air practically sparked with tension, every hair on Leorio's body standing on end as he reached out and placed a hand on Killua's shoulder. He jerked back as a crackle of electricity shocked him and everything went to hell.

Killua darted to the side as Kurapika leapt into motion, landing right where Killua had been a moment before. Leorio yelled, "Don't hurt him!" as he went to grab Kurapika's arm, but a flash of light from Killua stopped him. Where the boy had been standing a moment before there was now a small dragon. Leorio only got a glimpse before the two of them were chasing after each other again but he caught sight of white fur, feathered wings, and a long tail.

Leorio's mouth dropped open as the two attacked each other, hardly believing what he was seeing. They jumped off the walls, knocked over the couch and broke a lamp as they swiped at each other. Leorio was dumbstruck watching Killua twist and dodge, all quick reflexes and serpentine movements. Kurapika was more straightforward, attacking fast and aggressively even though none of his blows landed.

It took them tossing his rocking chair before Leorio was able to shake himself out of his shock. "Stop fighting!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs.

To his immense surprise, Kurapika froze in place, letting Killua barrel into him and sending the both of them tumbling into the dining room. Leorio rushed over to see Killua jumping back and Kurapika picking himself up, his arm bleeding where Killua had clawed it. Before he knew it they were back at it but the roles had been reversed. Killua chased as Kurapika dodged and weaved out of his way, knocking over the dining room table as they jumped around the room.

"I said stop!" Leorio yelled, and once again Kurapika stopped and let Killua get a hit in. Killua jumped back and they glared at each other over the upturned dining table.

"What the fuck was that about?!" Leorio yelled, glaring murder at the both of them. Neither paid him any attention.

"Why did you stop?" Killua asked. It was odd to hear his voice coming from a dragon's body, but Leorio had to admit that wasn't the oddest thing about having a dragon in his dining room.

Kurapika didn't answer. He glanced to Leorio before snapping his attention back to Killua, tensing up and looking vaguely uncomfortable.

"Tell me what's going on," Leorio growled, glaring at each of them in turn. If he had to strangle one of them to get answers he would do it so help him god.

He didn't have to strangle them, Kurapika answered. "I want to scare him enough for him to never test me again."

Leorio and Killua blinked at Kurapika's frankness, but that was a breath of fresh air in this storm of bullshit. "Thank you. Now Killua, what the fuck?"

Killua cocked his head as he studied Kurapika. "Are you…?" he asked slowly, looking to Leorio for a moment. When Kurapika tensed and growled a smile broke out on Killua's face. Snout. Whatever.

With a little flash, Killua as a human stood where the dragon was and he was laughing. "No way, are you serious?"

"What the fuck is so funny?" Leorio hissed, moments away from pulling hair out, and he wasn't certain if it would be his own.

"This whole situation!" Killua laughed and stuck his hands in his pockets, completely at ease. "Now I feel a little bad for scratching him up, you told him not to hurt me."

"Why the hell does what I say matter? I'm pretty sure he could seriously hurt you right now." Leorio glanced at Kurapika who was standing stock still, his fists clenched. Killua laughed harder.

Kurapika snapped, "Shut up! Why are you here?"

Killua got a hold of himself, wiping his eyes which were still full of mirth. "I came to run you off."

"How the hell did you even know he was a fae? You've never met him," Leorio said.

"I could smell it on Gon, and it smelled dangerous as hell. Why would you let someone who tried to kill you into your house?" Killua raised an eyebrow at Leorio.

"To be honest, he was here first." Leorio shrugged. "I found him chained up in the basement with some freaky eye shrine."

"And you let him go?!" Killua yelled at the same time Kurapika hissed, "It's not freaky!"

"Are you a moron?! Why would you release a chained fae? He was chained for a reason!" Killua looked ready to hit Leorio upside the head.

"He needed help! I wasn't going to let him starve down there! And yes Kurapika, your weird fetish shrine is freaky!" Leorio turned to Kurapika and froze, that feeling of being hunted coming back in full force. Kurapika's eyes were blazing scarlet as he stood straight up, glaring at Leorio. No one moved a muscle, it felt like no one was breathing either.

"Those eyes belong to my family. They were murdered in cold blood so someone could appreciate their pretty color." Kurapika was impossibly quiet, but Leorio still heard every word. The cold fury in his voice left no doubt that he was not the one responsible for their murders.

There was a sharp intake of breath and Leorio looked over to Killua who was paler than Leorio had ever seen him. "You're the red eyed beast," he whispered.

"The what?" Leorio asked, turning back to Kurapika. Thankfully those brilliant red eyes were slowly fading.

"The red eyed beast," Killua explained, "like the green eyed monster but for revenge. I never thought it was a real person but you're it, aren't you?"

Kurapika nodded, voice deathly serious as he said, "I got that title because I will go to any lengths to get my family's eyes back, and to make the ones who took them pay. That legend won't die until I find every last pair of my family's eyes."

Leorio shivered, absolutely able to believe Kurapika had made himself a legend. He'd always known Kurapika could be dangerous, but the tone of his voice in that moment made it abundantly clear that Leorio had misjudged exactly how dangerous he was.

Killua seemed to be in the same boat, though he was trying to hide it. He swallowed hard and asked, "Then why are you here? Why aren't you hunting them down?"

The intense feeling in the air died down as Kurapika relaxed and glanced at Leorio. "If I tried right now I'd get myself killed."

Killua also looked over to Leorio. "Oh, I see."

"Well I don't, what are you two talking about?" Leorio looked between them, getting annoyed again. It obviously had something to do with him, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what.

Kurapika crossed his arms and glared down at the floor. "You forbade me from hurting anything, and that's dangerous for what I need to do."

"What the hell does that have to do with anything? You don't need my permission!" Leorio threw his hands up, thoroughly confused.

Killua chuckled, finally starting to relax again, "He does actually, he's bound to you." At that, Kurapika scowled, still not looking at anyone.

"Bound," Leorio said, looking to Killua for the answer since Kurapika didn't seem willing to talk, "what does that mean?"

"Fae that are bested by a human are bound to that human. It means he has to do whatever you order him to do. I can't believe you managed to bind him without even knowing."

Leorio couldn't believe it either. That fight where he almost lost an eye, that must have been when it happened. Leorio felt guilty, wondering how many times he'd accidently ordered Kurapika to do something without noticing.

"Oh, well, consider yourself unbound." Leorio said to Kurapika. Both fae froze, looking at him in disbelief.

"Why would you do that?! That was the only thing keeping him from hurting people!" Killua yelled.

"I don't want a slave! I trust Kurapika not to go off on some kind of rampage Killua, he's not that kind of person." Now that he knew Kurapika wasn't murdering people for their eyes, Leorio fully trusted Kurapika not to kill or attack anyone that didn't deserve it.

"He tried to gouge out your eye," Killua pointed out.

"That was an accident," Kurapika said, finally speaking up. He still looked a bit dazed, as if he couldn't believe that Leorio had set him free without a second thought. "I attacked to scare him out of the house, I didn't expect to be pinned and I lashed out without thinking." He hesitated and looked up to Leorio, bowing his head slightly as he said, "Thank you for unbinding me."

"Of course, you should have told me earlier. I wouldn't have taken advantage of it too much." Leorio grinned but the strained smile Kurapika gave told him the joke fell flat. He should have known it would, being forced to do everything someone told you sounded like a nightmare. Leorio's grin slid off his face and he said, "I'm kidding."

"I know," Kurapika said softly, catching Leorio's eye. The amount of trust in those two words warmed Leorio to his core.

Killua cleared his throat, holding his hands behind his head as he watched them. "So now what? You going to head out?"

Kurapika broke eye contact to look over at Killua. "That's the idea, but I still have trouble finding the right kind of information. The black market isn't what it used to be. I barely know where to start."

"I can't really help you with that," Leorio said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I can."

Leorio and Kurapika both turned to look at Killua who had a little smirk on his face. "What? I've got connections."

"Oh really?" Leorio said sarcastically. "What kind of connections could a thirteen year old have?"

"A lot since my family are elite assassins."

Leorio stared at Killua, waiting for the boy to laugh and call him gullible, but it never came. Kurapika softly snorted, "And you were worried about me being dangerous?"

Killua just shrugged, "I'm not an assassin anymore, and I don't want my friend and his family around killers."

"Whoa, whoa, wait. Anymore? You're telling me you were, at one point, an assassin." Leorio pointed at Killua, little skinny Killua with the big blue eyes and childish grin. A grin that turned impish at his question.

"Surprise," Killua said in mock cheer. "I was pretty good at it too, but it was a family trade, not something that I wanted to do. So I got out and haven't looked back since."

It was the first time Killua had talked so frankly about his family. Leorio always knew Killua was hiding things but he never imagined it'd be the fact he was a dragon from a family of assassins. What the hell had his life become for that sentence to make perfect sense?

"If you use your family's connections, will it come back on you?" Kurapika asked. "I don't imagine leaving the family business was a popular choice." His eyes were trained on Killua, hope bare on his face but tempered by concern. Leorio smiled, touched that Kurapika was willing to put things on hold just to make sure Killua, a kid who'd attacked him, wouldn't suffer the consequences.

"Nah," Killua shrugged, "I'll bribe my brother for info. Not sure what he'll ask for in return though."

"I'll pay any price to get my family's eyes back." The intensity from before had returned and Leorio was once again reminded that Kurapika was considered a legend by other fae. What exactly had he been up to sixty years ago to earn him that kind of reputation?

"If I help you, will whoever chained you up come back on Leorio? They know where this house is," Killua said.

Kurapika shook his head. "I was chained for hunting down those who murdered my family, the group's leader took offense to that and hunted me down. So long as I leave him and his alone there's no reason for him to come back here."

Killua nodded and after a moment stuffed his hands into his pockets, looking off to the side. "Guess I should apologize for freaking earlier. Gon said you were nice and all, but you sure don't smell it."

"How does danger smell? No, you know what, I don't want to know." Leorio had been exposed to enough strange things today to last him all month. He turned to Kurapika. "I can't offer help finding things, but I can offer a place to stay, food, medical attention, things like that."

Kurapika hesitated before smiling slowly, as soft as sunlight through a window and just as warm. "Sometimes that's the most important thing."

Leorio was on cloud nine because of that smile as Kurapika and Killua discussed plans on how best to track down the remaining eyes. He didn't even complain as he went around and fixed the mess they left from their fight.

After a bit of talking, they all came to an agreement. Killua would take Kurapika with him to gather information while Leorio would serve as a home base, keeping supplies and giving any medical attention they might need. Leorio wasn't a fan of Kurapika leaving again, but he could see how much this meant to him so he held his tongue. There would always be other times to tell Kurapika how he felt. Even telling himself that didn't ease the tightness in his chest as he watched them fly away into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I missed a week of updates (oops) here's a second chapter for you guys!


	10. Chapter 10

Coming home to an empty house was depressing, especially after so long of having someone there to come home to. Leorio told himself to get used to it, there was no telling when Kurapika was coming back or how long he'd be able to stay. At least he could start inviting people over, though the thought didn't have the same appeal as it used to. Leorio kept the same routine even without Kurapika there, but he didn't study as much. He couldn't focus on anything when the absence was so loud in the library.

Leorio came home from classes one day, grabbed his books, and headed into the library. Without catching it he waved at Kurapika, who was sitting at the table, as he sat down in his window seat. "Hey Kurapika." It took a moment, but once his brain caught up with what was going on, he jerked straight up. "Kurapika!"

Kurapika held a hand in front of his mouth to hide his obvious laughter, his eyes dancing. "Hello Leorio."

"What are you doing here? Do you need help?" Leorio asked, scooting to the edge of his seat. It hadn't been too long since Kurapika had left, why had he come back so soon? Kurapika didn't seem upset so that helped ease some of Leorio's worry.

Kurapika waved off his concern and pulled out a cell phone. "I merely wanted to come and give you my new phone number. I also wanted to ask you if it was alright for people to come and leave things for me. This is your house after all, I don't want to overstep."

"Didn't stop you before," Leorio said with a grin.

"Before I wasn't putting you in danger." Kurapika gave Leorio a meaningful look that took the grin off his face.

"What kind of people are you going to be sending to me?" Thoughts of mafia men in black suits popped into mind.

"It's not the people I'm sending that I'm worried about, I would never send someone I didn't fully trust. I'm more worried about them being followed or traced back here."

"And the possibility of that happening is?" Leorio couldn't even imagine Kurapika letting someone tail him, he was way too careful for that. Anyone Kurapika trusted would probably be just as careful.

"Admittedly very low, but it's still a risk you should know about before you agree," Kurapika said.

"Okay. Then that's fine, I want to help however I can. I trust you."

Kurapika watched him for a moment before nodding, looking down at his phone. "Thank you. I doubt I'll send people by often. I'll most likely be traveling all around the world in my search, so I won't be bothering you too much."

It's a good thing Kurapika was looking at his phone or else he would have seen how Leorio's face fell. Of course Leorio had known Kurapika was going to be off searching, but he hadn't considered the distance involved. He didn't like the idea of Kurapika getting hurt again and not being able to come home.

Leorio decided to change the subject. "What kind of things are they going to be leaving?"

"Information mostly, things too sensitive to talk about over the phone. Maybe money or items I'll need to bargain with for the eyes. I doubt I'll trust anyone but myself to bring the eyes back here." Kurapika handed his phone over to Leorio, his new number prominent on the screen. Leorio entered it into his own phone and went ahead and made himself a contact in Kurapika's phone.

"If you're going to be traveling so much how are you going to come by and get any of it?" Leorio said as he passed the phone back to Kurapika.

"I'll have people come by to get things to bring to me," Kurapika said. Made sense, but…

"How will I know who to give what to?"

Kurapika paused. "I don't think anyone I send here will try to trick you, but… I suppose we could set up a password system."

Leorio smiled as Kurapika's expression turned contemplative, his gaze losing focus as he lost himself in thought. Leorio loved it, watching Kurapika work through a problem. He wanted to know his thought process, how his mind worked, though he doubted he'd ever really understand.

"A password system would work fine," Leorio said softly, still lost in watching Kurapika.

Kurapika looked at Leorio for a long moment before nodding. "We'll do that with anything of utmost importance. Again, thank you for agreeing to do this."

"No problem, it makes my life more interesting," Leorio said with a smile.

Kurapika smiled a little smile, as if amused by a joke only he knew. It was a little foreboding. Once more, Leorio wondered at what kind of people he'd be seeing soon.

Kurapika didn't stay much longer after that. Leorio knew he was busy, knew he needed to go find the rest of his family, but it was still hard to watch him leave. It was such a stark difference from how it was before, when Kurapika was the one staying home.

* * *

The first of his visitors was pretty anticlimactic. It was a normal looking guy named Bill handing off an envelope. Nice enough guy, if not too professional about it. Leorio was fiercely reminded of his early assumptions of mafia men, an assumption that wasn't eased by the next person to show.

Basho was a muscular guy with crazy sideburns and a love for haikus. There was nothing professional about him but he definitely had the bodyguard vibe going. He left a package that he said was an arm from a mummy and Leorio wasn't sure if he believed that, but he was sure he didn't want to open it and check.

Kurapika came by not too long after to pick both packages up, though Leorio wasn't home to catch him. Leorio tried calling Kurapika a few times but rarely ever got an answer and when he did it was always brief and vague. Leorio tried not to worry or let it get to him, after all he did trust Kurapika and knew from experience he could take care of himself. Still… the memory of Kurapika's scarlet eyes and the pure cold fury in his voice when he talked about his family's eyes, that's what worried him the most. He knew Kurapika had a tendency to neglect himself when he was focused on something, and Leorio had never seen him more focused. There was nothing Leorio could do about it though, except be there to help however he could.

Over the next two months the people who showed became more varied and stranger. There was a serious man with a black tattoo around one eye. He was quiet but still interesting to talk to. Less interesting was a bald headed guy Leorio swore he'd seen before who would not stop talking. Leorio had never been so happy to close his door before. The weirdest was a young girl that honestly flirted with him. When he tactfully told her he was too old, she laughed all the way out the door.

Every time someone would show up, Leorio would ask about Kurapika. Either they didn't know or didn't have any specifics to share and it aggravated him to no end. Kurapika wouldn't answer his phone, wouldn't let his own messengers know how he was doing, who was keeping track of him? Leorio supposed that was the point, he was trying to keep a low profile, but being kept in the dark still rubbed him the wrong way.

The only one with any concrete information was Killua who came by occasionally just to hang out and play all of Leorio's games. Getting information out of the brat was like pulling teeth, Killua enjoyed teasing Leorio, but it was always a relief to hear where Kurapika was, how he was doing, what he was up to.

Summer classes ended and he was getting ready for fall when one night there was frantic pounding on his door. Leorio vaulted over the couch to get to the door, expecting a wounded Kurapika. He wasn't far off. The dark skinned guy from college was standing there holding up a man covered in tattoos and blood.

"I didn't know where else to go," the college guy said. "I was told you would help."

Leorio was already grabbing the wounded man and helping carry him into the house before the guy finished speaking. "What happened?" he asked as he lowered the man onto the couch. With a shimmer, the man turned into a lanky, furry creature. Leorio had assumed he was a fae, but it was the first time any of them had shown their true selves to him. Of course this poor guy didn't have much choice. Without the clothes in the way, it was obvious where the wounds were. A deep bite wound on the guy's shoulder, much too close to his neck for Leorio's comfort, and several scratches along his torso, as if someone had grabbed him from behind.  
"We got mugged. Only reason we're not dead is they didn't know what we were," college guy said, watching as Leorio headed to the bathroom to grab his supplies. Ever since Kurapika had come home wounded, he'd kept first aid supplies downstairs and he was immensely grateful for his foresight.

"What the fuck mugged you? A vampire?" Leorio asked as he worked to clean the neck wound. It was odd working around fur, but the underlying structures seemed the same.

"Ha, I wish. Vampires aren't as messy," college guy said, easily taking the role of handing Leorio anything he needed. "I don't know what they were, but they were aiming to kill."

"So why aren't you hurt?" Leorio glanced over.

"I didn't get taken by surprise, plus werewolves aren't easily hurt."

Leorio paused and gave the college guy a better once over, but no matter what he simply looked normal. The guy smirked, showing pointy teeth, and Leorio turned his attention back to his patient. The wound wasn't as bad as it had originally looked and the bleeding had mostly stopped. The only thing he had to worry about was how much blood the man had already lost before getting here. It wasn't like he could give a magical creature a blood transfusion from his home. Thankfully the guy wasn't showing any serious symptoms of hypovolemic shock which meant he hadn't lost too much blood, or he was made of much stronger stuff than humans.

Leorio propped the guy's legs up to help with the blood loss, and grabbed his suture kit to stitch the worst of the wounds closed. He had to put it right back down and fetch a razor thanks to the guy's fur, but once he had that squared away it wasn't any problem to stitch the guy up.

Once Leorio started putting his supplies away, the college guy asked, "Is he going to be alright?"

"I don’t have a lot of experience working on whatever he is, but as far as I can tell he should be."

The guy let out a breath of relief and nodded. "Good. Thank you, I wasn't sure if you'd help or not."

"Who told you I would?" Leorio asked as he gathered the bloody towels. This definitely wasn't a Kurapika thing, so someone else was sending people to him.

"Basho did. He said you were a friend to fae and a good doctor.  
"I'm not a doctor yet," Leorio said automatically. "How do you know Basho?" 

"We work together. The name's Squala by the way." Squala held his hand out and Leorio shook it as he continued. "That's Kiriko."

"You go to my college don't you? I never could find a chance to talk to you." Despite many times trying to. That look of almost fear from the club crawl had never really left his mind.

"That's because I was avoiding you." At Leorio's raised eyebrow, he continued. "You smelled dangerous as hell and I didn't want to get mixed up with whatever you were doing."

Again with the smelling thing, it was weird to think he smelled so much like Kurapika. "Damn, does Kurapika smell that bad?"

Squala snorted, "It's not something most people can pick up on. You have to have a seriously good sense of smell to catch it, but yeah. If you can smell it he definitely smells like someone to avoid at all costs."

"I'd say it was weird to think of him like that but no, I can definitely believe it." What did that say about him? To be able to take down a dangerous, legendary person like Kurapika. Leorio felt pretty badass as he brought the soiled towels to the bathroom hamper to take care of later.

"How much do I owe you?" Squala asked as Leorio returned to the living room.

"What?"

"For taking care of him, how much do I owe you?"

Right, payment, that was a thing people expected after medical attention. Leorio considered it for a moment before shaking his head. "Nothing man, I'm glad I could help."

"Are you serious?" Squala asked incredulously, looking like he was waiting for a joke.

"Yeah. If you want to buy me some new towels feel free but other than that it's no problem. I'm not going to charge for saving his life when you couldn't go anywhere else." That'd be such an asshole thing to do and he knew quite a few of his classmates that wouldn't hesitate to do it. All Leorio had to do was think of his old friend for the temptation to dry up completely.

"Fuck, thanks." Squala ran his hand over his hair, looking over at Kiriko. "I can get someone to come pick him up tomorrow, I don't think he's going to be moving tonight anyway."

"Don't worry so much about it. He can stay here while he recovers if he needs to." He didn't have classes at the moment so he could actually take care of an invalid. Leorio wondered if the guy would heal as fast as Kurapika did.

"Now you're just fucking with me," Squala pointed at him, "no one's that much of a saint."

"He stays here you're paying for his food and definitely buying new towels, but do you really expect me to kick him out? Just moving him right now would be bad for him."

"Okay. Okay, deal." Squala got up and shook Leorio's hand. "I'll come back tomorrow to help, maybe bring his family if that's alright."

"So long as no one destroys anything I don't care."

Which is how he had a house full of people and a yard full of dogs the next day. Kiriko's family brought enough food to feed him and Leorio for weeks, and Squala brought more towels than Leorio had even ruined. The dogs were all his too, and Leorio watched in amazement as they wandered the grounds picking up limbs, watering flowers, and generally helping out. Apparently being a werewolf gave special perks where dogs were concerned.

Basho showed up as well to thank Leorio for "being as cool as I knew you would be." He promised this wouldn't become a common thing, knowing that Leorio had to go back to classes soon and didn't want to overwhelm him with people asking for help. Leorio assured him it was no problem, but agreed it shouldn't happen too often.

Kiriko didn't stay long, he healed at an accelerated rate like Leorio had guessed, but the whole time he was there his family was helping out however they could. Leorio thought them being around would be annoying, but he realized he'd been lonely in that house without Kurapika. He was sad to see them leave, though they promised to come by and help out whenever he needed them.

As the rest of his school vacation ended and fall classes started back up, his visitors from Kurapika were occasionally peppered with other fae. Mostly people who needed stitches or a place to lay low and recover strength. Leorio's grounds, surrounded by a thick tree line and no neighbors made it a perfect place for the larger fae to come and stay. Having an honest to god giant serpent coiled up in his backyard taking a nap was definitely an experience.

The downside to having random fae show up was he wasn't sure who he could ask about Kurapika. He didn't want to drop his name to the wrong person and put Kurapika or himself in danger, but the desire to know how he was doing was almost too strong to ignore. Killua, who still dropped by unannounced to eat all Leorio's food and play his games, was always a safe bet to ask, but the kid only knew small snippets of information. Not nearly enough to satisfy Leorio.

When he opened the door one weekend to a little dumpy looking man he had to stop himself from asking outright if they were from Kurapika or just needed help. Not that he would have turned them away, but it seemed he was getting less and less of Kurapika's messengers lately.

The little man smiled as he was let in and led to the living room. He paused and closed his eyes, tilting his head with a soft expression. "I can see why Kurapika trusts you, you have the nicest heartbeat in the entire city."

Hope blossomed in Leorio's chest before the rest of the words caught up to him. The little woman, her voice left no mistaking it, smiled wider as she looked up at him. "My heartbeat?" Leorio asked.

"Yes. A person's heartbeat never lies, its song reveals the true person under the surface." She twirled her fingers in the air as she talked, as if she were conducting an imaginary song.

"You must have some damn good hearing." Leorio pressed his hand to his chest, straining to hear his own heartbeat to no avail.

The lady chuckled and held out her hand. "My name is Melody. I'm unfortunately here to ask for a favor."

Leorio shook her hand and nodded. "If Kurapika sent you I'll help any way I can."

"I merely need a place to stay for a few days until my colleagues come into town. I hope that won't be a problem?" Melody said, and Leorio couldn't imagine it being one. She seemed so gentle and kind.

"No problem at all, I've got several extra rooms upstairs. Take your pick." Leorio led her to an empty room where she could put down her bag. As she trailed him back down the stairs, he couldn't stop himself from asking, "How is Kurapika doing?"

"He's doing well. A little too focused for his own good but I can only help so much with that. He doesn't appreciate being put to sleep even when he needs it." Leorio almost stumbled over a step, having expected vague information again, not something personal.

"Are you close to him?" Leorio asked, turning to her once they were back in the living room.

"As close as he lets me," Melody said, "which is closer than most I suppose."

"If he lets you put him to sleep then you must be. How do you manage that anyway? I never could get him off his computer without slinging him over my shoulder."

Melody laughed, a pretty sound that had Leorio smiling with her. "I can't imagine him letting you do that."

"He didn't have a choice." Leorio smirked. He'd only ever managed to get away with doing it twice, after that if he even thought of it Kurapika would glare so hard it'd stop Leorio in his tracks. It had been pretty effective those two times though.

"I'm afraid my method isn't nearly as entertaining. I'm a siren, my music can lull people to sleep if I so choose." Leorio had always thought sirens were supposed to be beautiful women, but he didn't voice that out loud.

"Something he can't fight against. I'll bet that pisses him off to no end."

"It does," Melody said simply, a glint of mischief in her eyes. Leorio decided he really liked this woman.

The feeling only intensified over the weekend as she proved to be the best houseguest possible. She was sweet and quiet and helped out without being asked. Not to mention she was nice to talk to. Any questions Leorio had about fae, magic, and even Kurapika she'd answer to the best of her ability. It was how he found out Kurapika had been all over the world, recovered at least three more pairs of eyes, and would be coming back home soon to drop them off.

The news made him happier than he had been in a long while, something he was sure Melody had picked up on if her knowing looks were anything to go off of. He didn't care if she knew he was pining like an idiot, he was just glad he'd be able to see Kurapika again. The first thing he was going to do was tell off the asshole for never answering his phone.

Melody left that Tuesday with her colleagues, a dog-like woman and the man with a black spot around one eye, leaving Leorio alone once again. It would have been depressing, still was a little if he was honest, but he had something to look forward to. He had no idea when Kurapika would show, but that didn't stop him from hurrying home every day in hopes of seeing him. If that bastard came and went while Leorio was in class Leorio swore he'd choke him.


	11. Chapter 11

They days crawled on, each one just as slow as the last. Leorio knew it was because he was looking forward to seeing Kurapika again, but knowing didn't help the aggravation.

One night as he was getting ready for bed he had to go back to the main house to retrieve his forgotten phone. As he grabbed it off the coffee table in the living room, he heard a noise coming from the kitchen. His heart soared, Kurapika was the only other person with a key, he'd come home. He should have considered an alternative before hurrying to the kitchen, but hope is blind.

As he rounded the corner, he saw a stranger bending over to look into his fridge. The man was tall with styled back red hair, wearing a crop top, high heels, and face paint of a star on one cheek and a teardrop on the other. He looked like he stepped out of a carnival, or a nightmare with how the refrigerator light illuminated him. As he noticed Leorio standing there, a sly smile spread across his face, making him look like a predator who just caught sight of his prey.

"Who are you?" Leorio asked. "And how the hell did you get into my house?"

The guy straightened up, chuckling lowly in a way that set alarm bells off in Leorio's mind. This clown was bad news, Leorio could feel it in his bones.

"Did you honestly think such a weak lock could keep out something like me?" the guy practically purred, closing the refrigerator door with a quiet click. The room was thrown into darkness with only a dim light coming through the curtain over the sink. His yellow eyes shone in the dark.

Leorio grit his teeth and stood up straight. "What do you want?" Was this one of Kurapika's messengers? A random fae that needed a place to stay? Or was he one of the fae Kurapika had warned him about?

"I'm here to meet my dear Kurapika, but I thought we might have some fun while waiting." Leorio could almost hear the heart symbol in his voice. He wasn't going to go for the obvious bait, instead focusing on the first part of his sentence.

"Your dear Kurapika?" It was unclear from how he'd said it if it was an endearment or animosity.

The guy hummed, the sound sending shivers of warning down Leorio's spine. "Oh yes, Kurapika and I go way back, much farther than a mortal like you can imagine."

"Mortal?" As in they weren't? He knew Kurapika was at least over sixty, but he'd never stopped and thought of how old he really was. He'd kind of assumed magic was at play for letting Kurapika survive that long.

A slow smile spread across the clown's face, somehow making him look even creepier. "You don't know do you? What kind of creature your friend is."

"I assume you're going to tell me?" Leorio said dryly.

"Of course," he said drawing out the words, cocking a hip and raising a hand to inspect his nails. "After all, it's only fair for you to know who you're getting… involved with." He glanced out of the corner of his eye at Leorio.

Ignoring the implication, Leorio said, "I don't need you to tell me who he is, I already know." He had to admit he was curious though. Kurapika kept his past a mystery and always dodged or deflected questions about it. Perhaps he could get some answers from this clown, though he wasn't sure how much would be true.

"Do you really? You truly know the red-eyed beast, the demon of the west, the chain bastard?" The guy was gleeful as he listed out the names Kurapika was known as.

"Just because I don't know what he did in the past doesn't mean I don't know him now," Leorio said defensively. People change, and whatever Kurapika had done in his past didn't define him today.

"Mmm, but aren't you curious? Don't you want to know how he earned those names? What he's done?" the clown said seductively. Leorio hesitated, causing him to smile wider. "Of course you do. So let me spin you a tale about the spiders."

"What?" Leorio asked. He was ignored.

"They're the most dangerous group on the planet, past and present, led by a literal demon from hell. No one stands a chance against them, that is until the demon created a nightmare. One that has hunted revenge for centuries, last of his kind and willing to die to make sure that demon is the last of his." The creep seemed too happy about what he was saying. "Do you want to know how that nightmare was born?"

"The eyes," Leorio said, his mouth dry.

"The eyes," the creep repeated. "Kurta eyes ignite in the most beautiful color when their passions are excited. They were a powerful, secretive race who stayed together and never left their forest. A perfect target." His smile turned sinister and his voice excited. "The demon's troupe descended on that forest and attacked, tortured and maimed the Kurta's family, all to bring out their anger which made the best color. The only one to survive was poor Kurapika who was in a nearby village getting medicine for a dear friend. What a beautiful tragedy."

"Shut up," Leorio said, voice strained. He did not like the way this guy sounded as he talked about the worst thing to ever happen to Kurapika, as if it were a fun tale to share.

"Can you imagine the look on his face? As he came home to a village covered in blood and decapitated family members."

"Shut up," Leorio said louder, his blood running cold. How old had Kurapika been when his whole world was torn away from him? When he'd lost everyone he'd ever known?

"It's no wonder he became what he is today." The creep licked his lips and his voice became so breathy it made Leorio's skin crawl. "A boogeyman to the strongest monsters the world has ever seen. Someone who's pushed himself so hard he could take on a demon and win. The perfect killing machine."

"I said shut up!" Leorio yelled. The silence that followed was so charged he felt his hair standing on end.

"I've always wanted to fight him," the creep said, voice low, expression predatory. "Both of them, but neither would allow it. Imagine my pleasure when I heard Kurapika had been bested by a human. Someone stronger than the demon of the west."

"I took him by surprise, I'm not stronger than him." Leorio didn't like the gleam in the creep's eyes, and he definitely didn't like how the bastard was starting to come closer.

"Oh but you are," the creep purred. "Humans have their own kind of power, do you honestly think anyone who pins him could bind him?" Leorio backed up until his back hit the counter as the creep slowly stalked closer. "You're exceptional, and I'd love to test your strength." His voice caressed every word as he leaned in, way too close for comfort.

Leorio tensed and leaned back, "Sorry, I don't think so." The guy's eyes were half lidded and the way he was speaking made things way too sexual. Despite his words, Leorio was ready to deck him if he tried anything more.

"Hisoka."

Leorio glanced over to see Kurapika in the doorway, glaring at the creep leaning over Leorio. Hisoka's face went flat with disappointment before he took a step back and smiled at Kurapika, running a hand through his hair. "You always have the worst timing."

"With you there's no such thing," Kurapika said, a barely there growl in his words. "Leave Leorio alone and come on, we've got things to discuss." Without looking back, Kurapika turned and walked out of the kitchen, his tail whipping behind him.

Hisoka watched him go with an unreadable expression and turned to Leorio with a goofy smile. Just like that, the disturbing atmosphere disappeared. Hisoka waved at Leorio as he followed after Kurapika. "Bye-bye, I'll see you later." The look he threw Leorio over his shoulder was a promise.

Leorio shuddered, feeling like he needed a hot shower to get the creep off of him. In fact, that's exactly what he was going to do, regardless of the fact he'd already had one that night.

Once he was clean, though his skin still crawled when he thought about it, he returned to the main building to wait on Kurapika. He probably wouldn't come back that night but Leorio didn't want to miss him.

Without meaning to, he fell asleep on the couch somewhere in the early morning hours. When he woke up the sun was streaming through the windows and he was covered with a blanket that hadn't been there before. It took him a moment to piece together what that meant, but once he did he launched himself off the couch and up the stairs to Kurapika's room.

There he was, curled up on the bed, a wing covering his head. As Leorio breathed a heavy sigh of relief, a bleary eyed Kurapika poked his head out from under his wing. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah everything's okay," Leorio said, meaning every word.

"Good. Go away." Kurapika laid back down and stretched his wings to their full length before curling them back against him, the one going back over his head. The action reminded Leorio of a cat covering its face with a paw.

With a soft smile, Leorio headed downstairs to start breakfast. He felt lighter than he had in a long time. Knowing where Kurapika was and that he was safe had him whistling as he cooked. Of course there was no telling how long Kurapika would stay, he could be gone as soon as he woke up for all Leorio knew. He hoped not, he wanted to talk to him, find out where he'd been, how he'd been doing, if he was okay. Leorio couldn't imagine hunting the disembodied eyes of his family and friends was good for Kurapika's mental health.

Kurapika slept through breakfast and almost through lunch as well. He came walking into the kitchen with a yawn as Leorio was finishing his sandwich. Once he sat at the table, Leorio wordlessly set the sandwich down in front of him and started making a new one. Kurapika murmured a thanks and they sat in comfortable silence as they ate. It felt like no time had passed at all, like Kurapika had never left in the first place.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with Hisoka," Kurapika said once he woke up more.

"Who the hell is he? The guy made my skin crawl." Leorio shuddered, remembering the creep's yellow eyes pinning him like he was something to be consumed.

Kurapika smiled. "He has that effect on most people. Hisoka is… hard to describe. Murderer would be the simplest, but immortal thrill seeker works better."

"Immortal. Are you serious?" The guy had implied it but Leorio hadn't really believed him. The murderer thing he could absolutely believe.

"Yes, unfortunately. He's ancient and cannot die so he seeks thrills in finding the strongest opponents and killing them. He's been after me for a while but I won't fight him."

"Yeah, he mentioned that. He wants to fight me too, I think, seemed like he was thinking of other shit when he said it." The sexual way he was speaking made Leorio feel like he needed another shower.

"He was, he gets off on fighting." Kurapika laughed at Leorio's horrified look. "I'm sorry but it's true."

"Okay, never going to fight that guy holy shit." If Hisoka hadn't been so creepy Leorio might have been more okay with it, he was handsome, but no. Never with creepy clown man.

"Too bad, you might actually be able to win." Kurapika said with a straight face, but his eyes betrayed his amusement.

"And what about you? Don't think you can beat him?" Leorio turned it right back on him.

"I'd rather never find out." Kurapika grimaced.

It was Leorio's turn to laugh. "If he's so horrible why do you associate with him?"

Kurapika let out a weary sigh, one that spoke of dealing with Hisoka for far longer than was pleasant. "He's a necessary evil unfortunately. He's part of the phantom troupe and feeds me information on their movements."

"The phantom troupe?"

Kurapika's expression turned darker. "He may have referred to them as the spiders, they go by both names."

The spiders, the group who killed Kurapika's entire race. Leorio's brows drew together as he growled, "That bastard is part of them?"

His anger abated somewhat when Kurapika shook his head. "Not when it happened. He joined recently to try and fight their leader. He finds it amusing to help me, saying whoever comes out on top is the one he'll fight."

"He's twisted." Playing with Kurapika and the people who ruined his life, all for his own sick gain.

"He is," Kurapika agreed, "but he's useful. So long as he remains that way I'll tolerate him."

"I don't like it, but I trust that you know what you're doing." It's all he could do. Leorio knew nothing of the struggles Kurapika was going through, the asshole wouldn't tell him anything.

"You don't have to worry, I've been dealing with Hisoka for a very long time," Kurapika said.

Leorio hesitated before asking a question that had been on his mind. "How old are you? He implied you were immortal too."

Kurapika didn't answer right away, instead he picked at what little was left of his sandwich. "I'm not immortal, but I'm not sure of my age, I've lost track. Over four hundred would be my guess."

"Four hundred," Leorio said loudly. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," Kurapika said with a rueful smile that calmed Leorio down.

"How old are you going to get?" How long was Kurapika going to outlive him? He wondered if that's why he seemed sad, he knew he'd be around long after Leorio was gone.

"That depends on how long I'd like to."

Leorio's blood ran cold as the implication of that hit him. He leaned forward suddenly, startling Kurapika. "Don't fucking talk like that."

Kurapika looked thoroughly confused for a moment before his expression cleared. "Oh, no, no not suicide."

Leorio relaxed and sat back. "Then what do you mean?"

"It's… it's a Kurta thing. We're able to slow our aging by will. The elder, he theorized it was because we used to be solitary creatures that needed to stay alive until we found a mate. It's one of those quirks that got passed down through the generations." Kurapika wouldn't look up from his plate as he spoke. Leorio couldn't imagine it was easy thinking about his people after what had happened to them.

"So you can just choose to stay alive?" Kurapika nodded. "For how long? You said slow your aging, so it doesn't fully stop it right?"

"Right," Kurapika said, still not looking up. He was quiet for a moment. "I'm not sure for how long, no one's really pushed themselves that far."

"Is it hard to do?" Leorio got the distinct feeling that Kurapika was purposely holding back information.

"It can be, depending on how long you slow your age."

These one sentence answers were aggravating, especially since Leorio knew Kurapika usually loved explaining things. "Let me guess, slowing it for four hundred years is a bit extreme."

Kurapika looked up at Leorio. "It is."

Leorio banged the table with his fist, "Dammit Kurapika just tell me what you're trying to hide."

Kurapika huffed, "What do you want me to say Leorio? It doesn't matter in the long run."

"If you're hiding it from me then I'm willing to bet that it does. What is it?" Leorio wasn't letting this one go, Kurapika was secretive about a lot of things but this one he wasn't deflecting his way out of. It had Leorio worried that he was trying in the first place.

"Fine," Kurapika glared at Leorio. "Kurta normally only extend their life for a few decades, a century at the most. The longer we hold it the harder it is to maintain. It feels like I’m straining to keep a muscle tense at all times, but I can't stop. Not until I've found my family and make the troupe pay for what they've done."

"What happens when you finally stop?" Leorio cared more about Kurapika's wellbeing than his missions. He wanted Kurapika to succeed, but not at the cost of his health. Kurapika didn't answer. "Kurapika."

Kurapika looked directly at Leorio as he said, "The backlash may very well kill me, so there's no use worrying about it. What's done is done Leorio."

Leorio covered his face with his hand and took a deep breath. "I know why you did it but I'm still going to call you an idiot. How much longer can you go on like this?"

"As long as I need to," Kurapika answered seriously. Looking up and seeing the fire in his eyes, Leorio knew he meant it.

"… Okay," Leorio said quietly, then again stronger, "okay. You're still an idiot, but you're my idiot so I'm going to help you however you need. Just ask."

Kurapika went to say something but Leorio cut him off by pointing at him. "I mean that. Ask me. Don't try doing things on your own because I know you will."

Kurapika studied him for a moment before smiling. "You've already been a great help. You saved someone's life, you've helped people who had nowhere else to go, and you've been letting my coworkers come and go as they will. I don't know what else I can ask of you Leorio."

"Well," Leorio rubbed the back of his neck, "if you can think of something just let me know."

"I will," Kurapika said sincerely.

It warmed Leorio to know that Kurapika did indeed trust him. He smiled, one that was returned, before he changed the subject. "Since you're here, why don't you tell me some of what you've been up to."

Kurapika's smile slipped. "I can't stay very long, there's somewhere I need to be."

Of course, Leorio should have known. "Alright," he said, unable to keep all the disappointment out of his voice, "but you're going to have to come back sooner or later and next time I will hear of your exploits."

"Deal." Kurapika stood and brought his plate to the sink to rinse off. "I think I'll be in the area for a while, so I should be coming back sooner than later."

Hope bloomed in Leorio's chest at the prospect of keeping Kurapika home for a few days, even though he knew that was unlikely. It wasn't much longer before Kurapika was saying goodbye, and as Leorio watched him fly away he couldn't help but worry. Things weren't that great, Kurapika was still hunting and probably would be for a long while, and the idiot was suffering with the whole slowing his aging bit, but for now Leorio knew where he was and that he'd be coming back. That was all he could ask for at the moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Hisoka is too much fun~


	12. Chapter 12

"Man, why don't you ever hang out with us anymore?" Knuckle asked as they walked down the street. Vendors lined the sides, their wares open to all as people flooded the streets. There was an open air market and Zepile insisted on them going with him.

"I told you guys, I've been busy with side jobs." Such as stitching people up and being a liaison for a friend. He barely left the house more than he had to because of it, he didn't want to miss anyone who needed help. He was glad he agreed to this outing though, he'd missed his college buddies.

"Those jobs must pay a pretty penny for you to never have to work. Hook us up man," Zepile said as he held up an ugly vase and inspected it. He turned it around a few times before putting it back and rejoining Leorio and Knuckle.

"Sorry, they're not exactly something I can pass around. They kind of come out of nowhere most the time." Not like the "jobs" were the ones paying him, he was getting by on wine sales. He knew he was probably getting ripped off on some of them but it was better than trying to find a part time job on top of college and fae keeping.

"Sounds like a headache," Knuckle said. They turned down a side street where there were less people roaming but no shortage of vendors. After seeing the price tag on a gaudy lawn ornament, Leorio could guess why this street wasn't crowded.

"It can be, but it's honest work and I don't mind too much." Leorio watched as Zepile zoomed in on another ugly vase and started inspecting it.

Knuckle leaned over and said to Leorio quietly, "Think he sees himself in those things?"

Leorio had to smother a laugh with his fist but Zepile wasn't paying them any mind. He scrutinized the bottom of the vase before he said excitedly, "Ah-hah! I'll take it."

Once the vase was boxed up and they started moving again, Leorio couldn't help but ask, "What is with you and those vases?"

"I made this one," Zepile said, knocking the side of the box with his knuckles.

"So it is a self-portrait," Knuckle said. This time Leorio didn't bother hiding his laughter, it only growing as Zepile backhanded his chest.

"Shut up both of you, it's a counterfeit. I made a grand off of this piece of junk even though it's so badly made."

"I'm surprised it's worth that much for how ugly it is," Knuckle said as he headed to the a vender on the side of the street to get a better look at the jewels for sale. Leorio didn't know why, wasn't like he had a girlfriend.

"That's probably why he counterfeited it, no matter how you screw it up it still looks right," Leorio said.

Zepile scoffed. "Well you're not wrong. It's embarrassing though, so I'd rather them off the market."

Leorio ducked under the awning where Knuckle had gone to. The shade felt great after spending most the day under the sun, like dipping into a cool pool. He looked over the twinkling jewels before the vendor caught his eye. It was that little girl that had flirted with him a long while back. When he caught her eye she winked and blew him a kiss.

Leorio froze, hoping dearly that his friends hadn't seen that. Thankfully Knuckle was too interested in a bracelet and Zepile was a booth over. Leorio took another look at her wares, wondering if any of them were magical, when a necklace caught his eye. It was a phoenix made of what had to be a red opal. When the light caught it there seemed to be rivers of fire within it, glittering as if it were alive. The details were outlined in gold and each tail feather ended in a small ruby. It immediately made him think of Kurapika.

"How much for this one?" Leorio said, sliding his hand underneath it so he could tilt it in the light. It's eye was also a ruby and seemed to follow him as he moved. The whole thing seemed so alive, he could almost convince himself it was warm in the palm of his hand.

The girl smiled knowingly. "I'll sell that one to you for a thousand and a half."

Knuckle jerked over to see what Leorio was talking about. "What the hell are you—oh. Damn that's gorgeous."

"Yeah," Leorio said, still looking at the necklace, mesmerized by the fire within. "Any way I can haggle you down from that?" He said, looking up to the girl.

"Sorry, that's already a discounted price." She smiled and winked again.

Knuckle elbowed Leorio in the side. "Seems like you got an admirer."

Leorio shoved him away, not comfortable with how true that was. "Yeah shut up. I'll take it." He pulled out his wallet and fished around for his credit card.

"Are you seriously blowing a grand on a necklace?" Knuckle said.

Zepile poked his head in from the booth next door as Leorio handed over his card. "He's doing what now?"

"Buying a necklace," Leorio said, ignoring the look Knuckle was giving him. It probably was way too much to spend on a pretty rock, but something about it made Leorio certain he needed to get it for Kurapika. Maybe it was a hunch, maybe he just really wanted to see Kurapika's face when he gave it to him.

The girl handed his card back to him before taking the necklace and putting it into a fancy jewelry box. "The legend of the phoenix says that it'll be reborn after death." She said as she tucked tissue paper around the necklace. "I like to think some of that magic is present in a necklace like this." Her tone was meaningful as she handed the box over and Leorio couldn't help but feel as if there were some truth to it.

Zepile tugged the back of Leorio's jacket until he backed up out of the booth. "Let me see this necklace."

Leorio showed him and Zepile whistled. "Whoever is getting that must be pretty damn important to you."

"Yeah, he is." Leorio put the lid back on the box and tucked it securely in the inside pocket in his suit.

"Why haven't you told us anything about this precious guy?" Knuckle said as they started back to the more crowded and less expensive parts of the market.

"I don't tell you guys everything," Leorio laughed. "Besides, he values his privacy."

"Is that why you never invite us over? You shacked up with mister private?" Zepile said.

"Pretty much."

"What happened to your pest problem? The guy that sliced your face open," Knuckle said. Both of them looked at Leorio's scar and out of habit he reached up to touch it.

"Well um… that's all over now." Leorio honestly forgot it was there most the time, only remembering when someone pointed it out or he caught sight of his reflection.

"Really? What happened? You kick his ass out?" Knuckle asked.

"Not quite. Turns out he wasn't as horrible a person as I'd thought." Kurapika was only dangerous to those that crossed him. That shouldn't be comforting.

"So what? You let him stay with you?" Zepile laughed, "Is that who this mysterious precious guy is?"

"Um."

Zepile stopped walking and stared at Leorio as if he'd grown another head. "Are you serious? You shacked up with the crazy guy?"

Leorio turned to him and shrugged, "Like I said, he's not a bad person. We had some issues and we cleared them up."

"Dude, you're the crazy one. Aren't you scared he'll snap again and attack you?" Knuckle said. They all started walking again when they realized they were standing in the middle of the busy lane.

"Not at all. I'd trust him with my life." Leorio wasn't surprised to realize just how much he meant that.

Zepile shook his head. "You'd better after spending a grand on him."

Leorio laughed but had to agree. He really didn't have that kind of money to blow whenever he felt like it. Which meant he spent the rest of the day trailing behind Zepile and Knuckle and helping carry their purchases.

As he came home that evening the sun was starting to set behind the trees, bathing the grounds in a golden glow. It had been a really good day and Leorio hummed to himself as he parked and headed into his house. He went into the kitchen to grab a drink and pulled out the necklace to look at it again. It was just as gorgeous as before, still sparkling with inner fire. He couldn't wait to give it to Kurapika. That is if Kurapika came by again before he left the area.

Leorio frowned, wondering if Kurapika would leave without seeing him again. It was a possibility, he'd done it before. One way or another damnit, Kurapika was going to get that necklace. Leorio set it down on the table and went to get a pen and paper. He'd leave it there out in the open with a note so if Kurapika did come by while he wasn't home then at least he'd get it before he left.

Leorio debated on what to say, holding the pen above the paper as he thought. "I saw this and thought of you," seemed too straightforward and not enough, but, "My heart is on fire for you like this phoenix," seemed too much and too stupid. In the end he wrote, "Kurapika, everything about this reminds me of you, from its fire to its legend. I couldn't pass up buying it for you."

He could have probably done better, but he was satisfied. Hopefully, Kurapika would never have to see the note and Leorio would be able to give it to him in person. As Leorio went to leave the kitchen he glanced out the window and did a double take. A child was standing in his backyard, stock still like some kind of horror movie creature. Leorio clutched his chest where it felt like his heart had skipped a beat and leaned over to let out a breath. He wasn't one to normally get scared of weird things but considering the kind of life he was living now that kid could very well be the antichrist for all he knew.

Looking back out the window, the kid hadn't moved a muscle. Leorio doubted they were a random fae that needed help, they wouldn't be standing out in the yard in that case. Which meant it was another one of Kurapika's weird friends. Leorio scowled as he pulled out his phone, glaring at the kid while it rang. Of course Kurapika wasn't going to pick up, that'd be too easy.

"Hey, tell your friends to stop skulking in my yard. There's this kid out there that looks like they crawled out of a Japanese horror film, kimono and all. Friend of yours or not, I'm telling them off for scaring the hell out of me." Leorio hung up and headed outside.

He had been joking about the kimono but as he got closer he realized the kid really was wearing one. His steps faltered for a second, but he continued on determinedly. The kid couldn't be more than ten or so, with a black hair in a Chinese bob and a black kimono with a pretty white petal pattern along the bottom. The kid wasn't intimidated at all by Leorio as he stomped his way up to him.

"What the hell are you doing kid? The front door is on the other side of the house." Leorio pointed his thumb behind him as if the kid couldn't tell where he meant.

The kid glanced at the house before turning his attention back to Leorio. "Do you know Killua Zoldyck?"

Leorio paused, reevaluating the situation. Not a random fae, probably not one of Kurapika's people… So who was he? "Who wants to know?"

"You don't have to answer, I already know he's been here."

"Then why the hell did you ask?" Leorio said with a scowl.

"To confirm it. Humans have the worst poker faces." The kid had been almost expressionless up to that point, but now his eyes narrowed. "You're one of the reasons my brother hasn't come back home."

"Brother?" Leorio guessed he was talking about Killua, but this kid looked nothing like his light haired little friend. Only the eyes were similar, though the color was off. Killua had big blue eyes, this kid had big pink eyes that seemed to stare straight through him.

"Yes. He left home for his, friends," the way he said it made it seem as if he didn't believe friends were a thing, "and he won't return home because of them."

Leorio still didn't have all the details on Killua's history or family life, but he knew a little bit and he couldn't deny the truth of this kid's words. Gon was the reason Killua decided to leave his family, though Leorio was pretty sure not wanting to be an assassin controlled by his parents was another big factor in his decision.

"You can't force him to come back home if he doesn't want to," Leorio said.

"I can if he has nothing left to stay away for." The kid flicked his wrist and a folding fan slid into his hand. He snapped it open and raised it high.

Leorio almost wanted to laugh with how childish that idea was, but he was too busy diving out of the way as the kid brought the fan down. Leorio didn't know what was going to happen, but he recognized an attack when he saw one. Invisible blades of what had to be wind cut up the ground he'd been standing on a moment before.

Survival mode kicked in and without thinking about it Leorio tackled the kid. Those pink eyes went wide as he was brought down, struggling just a moment too late to get out of the headlock Leorio put him in. Yet another fae that underestimated him.

"Calm down and think about—" Leorio didn't get to finish that thought, the boy in his arms flashed and started expanding. Right, dragon, he had forgotten the Zoldycks were dragons. Leorio threw the kid away from him, but not before getting clawed on the arm. Scrambling to stand up, Leorio got his first good look at the small dragon staring him down. He looked like a crane, with a beak like face, a long slender neck and thin legs, though the whip like tail was all dragon. His beautiful black scales seemed to disappear into the half-light, and his wide wings were covered in glossy feathers tipped in white. Watching him raise up on his back legs and lift himself in the air with those large wings was the most graceful thing Leorio had ever seen.

"Do you have any last words?" the kid asked. He seemed to hover in midair, hardly having to flap to stay there. Must be more magic, Leorio was getting tired of magic.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact I do. Catch me." Leorio turned tail and ran as fast as he could back to the house. He needed a weapon, something that he could use to defend himself against the little beast.

There was a noise of surprise behind him but that didn't last for long. The dragon was in front of him before he could get more than halfway across the lawn. The kid laughed and flapped his wings hard, raising them up wide as several little feathers floated down. As if they had a mind of their own, they started swirling and one shot out straight for Leorio.

He jerked a hand up to shield his face, expecting serious pain but instead it felt more like a papercut as the feather glanced off his palm. He looked down at the small, barely bleeding cut before looking back up at the dragon, wondering if there had been a mistake. He got the distinct feeling that the kid was smiling as several more feathers separated from the cloud and headed for him.

Leorio ducked and dodged, but soon there were more feathers than he could count whirling around him. They sliced through his clothes to get to skin, always leaving small and painful cuts, but never anything life threatening. It hurt like a son of a bitch, but he wasn't in danger of dying from it yet. He grit his teeth and charged forward, breaking out of the feather tornado and heading for the house. More specifically, the back patio where there was a rake leaned against the wall.

The feathers were back on him the moment he slowed down, still only stinging but swirling faster and faster. Leorio felt like he'd been skinned alive, every nerve ending alight with pain. Leorio grabbed the rake and swung around to hit that brat with it, but a feather speared itself straight through his hand. With a yell, he dropped the rake and clenched his fist to his chest, glaring up at the dragon. This kid was playing with him. He could be killed at any moment but the kid wanted to hurt him first. If Leorio couldn't get the sadistic brat out of the air then he was going to die.

"Do you really think your brother would approve of you killing his friends?" Leorio yelled up to the dragon. Each second that went by added another cut to his poor, abused skin. His clothes were getting shredded.

"Maybe. It proves I'm stronger than those he chooses to associate with." To drive the point home, the kid lodged a feather into Leorio's shoulder.

Leorio yelled and stumbled forward, kicking the rake with his foot. If he could only get the dragon to come closer…

"He values our friendship, not our strength," Leorio hissed as a feather cut a gash in his leg. "Killing us only proves you don't understand or care how he feels!" Several feathers dug deeply into his skin all at the same time, sending white hot pain through his whole body. Leorio swayed but kept his ground as blood soaked into his clothes.

"You're only thinking of yourself!" A feather flew through his side. "He can be miserable so long as you get what you want, right!?" Several more deep gashes erupted across his body, spraying blood onto the lawn.

"Shut up! You know nothing of our family." The kid flew in closer, raising a clawed hand to most likely finish him off, but Leorio wasn't going to give him the chance. With a cry, Leorio stomped on the prongs of the rake, sending the handle up into his waiting hand. Before the brat could react, Leorio swung the rake and knocked him right out of the air. He landed with a painful sounding thud, and as he tried to stand, Leorio tackled him back to the ground.

Leorio thought wrestling Kurapika down had been hard, pinning this kid was next to impossible. The blood on his hands made the black scales slick and hard to hold. It was like wrestling an eel, but one with claws. Thankfully the feathers were nice and easy to grab and Leorio was able to take hold of the boy's wings and shove him down, pressing a knee between his shoulder blades and crushing him into the bloodstained grass.

"Yield!" Leorio yelled. It had worked with Kurapika, maybe it would work for a dragon.

The kid started laughing. "Are you seriously trying to bind me?"

"If it means you not killing me then yes, now yield!" Leorio pressed down harder on the dragon's back, feeling a little bad for hurting a kid, but then his whole body reminded him why this kid deserved a beating and he didn't feel so bad anymore.

The kid wasn't even struggling, he was calm as can be as he said, "You'll bleed to death well before I yield to you."

"So be it, but I'm not going to let you up until that happens or you admit I've won." He knew the kid was right, he was already getting light headed and it wouldn't take long for his strength to fail him. Not to mention any moment this kid could send a feather straight through his heart and there was nothing he could do about it.

Speaking of the feathers, they'd all fallen to the ground and lay there motionless. Leorio looked around and couldn't see a single one floating. "You just going to sit here and let me bleed on you? Why not end it now?" Leorio hunched over the boy, waiting on the pain. A long moment passed with no answer from the kid nor any movement from the feathers. "Answer me." Leorio pressed down harder onto the dragon's back and pulled on his wings.

The boy's head came up and around to bite Leorio's arm, his body bucking at the same time. Leorio yelled and was almost unseated, but he put his full weight on the kid's back and grabbed his head, prying the dragon's jaws apart. Leorio shoved the kid's head onto the ground, the free wing beating him in the side.

"Goddamnit answer me or yield!" The kid struggled harder under Leorio but he was no match for Leorio's strength. His claws dug deep furrows into the earth and his wing's flailing caused the loose feathers to fly into the air. Again Leorio expected a swift death, but the feathers remained lifeless. "Why aren't you killing me?"

"If you welcome death get off of me and I'll gladly give it to you," the kid growled, his voice muffled from where Leorio was holding his head down.

"You can't can you? For some reason you can't use your magic while I'm pinning you." It made no sense but Leorio wasn't going to question it. The kid growled and his struggling slowed to a stop.

"I don't have to use it, I've already killed you. I just have to wait."

"You can't use it." Leorio bore down on him, conscious of how fragile the kid's neck probably was, but not holding back. "You've lost this fight and we both know it. Admit defeat, brat."

The dragon under him trembled and growled, straining against Leorio's hold but unable to budge him. Leorio's sole focus was on the kid under him, his pain, the cold feeling setting in, none of that mattered at the moment. He kept the kid crushed under him as he leaned over and growled to his face, "Admit you've lost."

"No!" The kid cried, a hint of panic in his voice.

"Admit it!" Leorio yelled.

The kid gave a start under him and yelped, "Okay!" He froze, eyes wide and more tense than he had been before.

"Okay what?" Leorio said. Judging by the kid's reaction it had worked, but Leorio wasn't about to take any chances.

"I—" The kid grit his teeth and relaxed. "You won."

"Damn right I did." Leorio let up a little, not crushing the boy anymore, "Now, you're going to sit your ass right here and not move. No attacking anyone, no calling anyone, just sitting here like a good kid. Understand?"

"Yes." The kid said simply.

Leorio hopped off of him and had to catch himself against the wall, the world spinning sickeningly. He wasn't sure how much blood he had lost, but it was enough to be concerning. The pain was back in full force too, enough to make him want to curl in on himself. 

The little dragon sat up primly and watched him, no doubt waiting for him to die so the binding would be null and void. At least that's how Leorio assumed it would work. He glared at the kid before limping into the house, each step an agony as pain lanced its way through the multitude of gashes. As he took stock of his injuries in the bathroom, he wasn't sure where to start or even which one was the worst. 

Leorio stripped, cleaned himself off, patched himself up, and had to brace himself against the sink as even that small amount of action had him weak and shaking. It was the blood loss, causing him to be lethargic and clumsy, making everything feel like a dream. He was pretty sure it was bad, but he was also avoiding thinking about it. The constant sting of pain from nearly every inch of his skin kept him grounded, kept him from going to lay down and never moving again.

As he stood there staring listlessly at the running water, he heard the front door open and hurried steps that slid to a halt just past the bathroom. Leorio looked up into the mirror to find Kurapika's horrified face staring back at him.

"Leorio! Are you okay?" Kurapika rushed in and stood next to Leorio, hands hovering but not daring to touch.

"I got my ass kicked by a kid, what do you think?" Leorio said, happy to hear that his voice was steady. He didn't feel too steady. He should find some clothes, Kurapika probably didn't want to see him naked.

"Come on, come sit down." Kurapika ushered Leorio into the living room, not even mentioning the nudity. Leorio only wobbled a little bit but that didn't stop Kurapika from keeping a steadying hand on his arm. It was probably needed more than Leorio realized, by time he sat down he was lightheaded and sweating.

Kurapika knelt down in front of Leorio and asked, "What happened?"

Leorio took a moment to just breathe before he said, "Kid was out in the yard, wanted to know about Killua. Blamed me for keeping Killua from home and tried to kill me."

Confusion crossed Kurapika's face, "Killua?" He shook his head, dismissing the question. "How did you survive? That kid, he's very strong. Did he let you go?"

Leorio scoffed, "Hell no. He'd have killed me if he could. I bound him like I did you." He felt a sense of pride as Kurapika's jaw fell.

"You—" Kurapika stared at him for a moment before laughing, relief clear in his voice. "You're amazing. Where is he now?"

"Sitting his ass pretty in the backyard. He can't move, can't hurt anyone, and can't call anyone. Brat fucked with the wrong guy."

"He sure did. I'm going to go ask him some questions, you stay here and rest." Kurapika got up and put his hand on Leorio's shoulder for a moment before heading out back.

"I want to hear this too," Leorio said, getting up and swaying before snatching a blanket to cover himself up with. He'd already beaten the kid, he didn't need to flash him too. The soft fabric felt like burlap as it slid across his multitude of tiny cuts.

Kurapika made a disapproving noise, but didn't stop him, instead waiting for him to catch up so he could walk by Leorio's side. Each step hurt and his head was pounding and why did he think this was a good idea? There was a ringing in his ears that only got stronger the closer he got to Kurapika, and was his breathing really as ragged as it sounded? He didn't make it all the way out into the yard, he barely made it halfway across the room before his strength gave out. Kurapika dove faster than Leorio had ever saw him move in order to catch him, and they both hit the floor.

Leorio could see Kurapika's mouth moving but no noise penetrated the static surrounding him and creeping into his vision. At least things didn't hurt as everything went to black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so, so sorry about the long wait for this chapter. Life decided to jump in and hit me over the head.


	13. Chapter 13

Leorio woke with a start, the sound of thunder slowly fading away. The movement caused him to groan, every inch of him stinging and several spots throbbing in pain. His memory came back to him in bits and pieces, the kid, the fight, Kurapika coming home. He'd wholly believe it was all a dream if not for the pain.

Trying to sit up was the worst idea he'd ever had. He could barely raise a few inches off the cushions before the gashes along his sides forced him back down. Looking around even hurt as it pulled on the wounds along his shoulders. He was on his couch, covered in a blanket, legs elevated as they should be to help with the blood loss. Kurapika sat in the recliner, head propped up by his hand as he slept. How long had Leorio been out? Long enough for a storm to roll in, another peal of thunder split the silence and the rain intensified.

Since moving was out of the question, Leorio instead lay there and took stock of his many injuries. He still felt raw from all the tiny cuts lining his body, but that was a minor annoyance compared to his worse wounds. He couldn't count how many gashes he had, mostly because the pain from one bled into another. He'd been a bit out of it when bandaging himself up, but he knew none of them were too horrible. Oddly enough, he was lucky the brat was sadistic, wanting to cause pain more than wanting to seriously maim him.

Speaking of the brat, Leorio wondered where he was. Before he could try and sit up again to get a better look around, a crack of thunder caused the lights to flicker. Kurapika woke up with a tiny snort and as soon as he saw Leorio was awake, rushed over to his side. "Leorio!" Kurapika cried, leaning over him. The phoenix necklace swung gently in the air between them, the light catching the glittering flames within.

"You're wearing it," Leorio said, ignoring the pain to reach up and touch it. He had imagined Kurapika wearing it of course, but actually seeing it around his neck filled Leorio with a warm feeling he didn't want to put a name to quite yet.

"What?" Kurapika glanced down and gently took Leorio's hand. "If you're pointing out the obvious then you must be fine." His voice didn't carry the same flippancy as his words did.

"Yeah, I will be. Hurt like a son of a bitch though." Kurapika was still holding his hand, still looking at him with worry in his eyes, and that warm feeling grew to the point of bursting.

"I don't doubt it. Let me help you sit up and we'll get you some painkillers." Kurapika slid his arm under Leorio's shoulders, so gentle but it still caused Leorio to hiss as it pulled at his wounds. Thankfully he didn't have to sit up too much, just enough for Kurapika to lay a few pillows behind him.

He had to use his off hand to hold the glass of water since his dominant one had a hole through it, and he trembled a little as he took the couple of painkillers that weren't going to be remotely enough. Once Kurapika took the water back Leorio groaned. "I don't want to move ever again."

"I thought you said you'd be fine," Kurapika said, a glint of amusement in his eyes.

"Oh shut up," Leorio said, though he couldn't keep the smile off his face.

Kurapika chuckled before picking his necklace up to study it. "Where did you get this?"

"Remember that little girl you sent over here before? Biscuit or cake or something, I bought it from her." Leorio watched as Kurapika twisted the phoenix back and forth, catching the light in its shining feathers.

Kurapika chuckled, "And how much did it cost?"

"Not telling you."

"A fortune," Kurapika said with certainty. "Did she tell you what it does?"

"Does?" Leorio asked. It was a necklace, it looked pretty and that was it. Probably.

"If Biscuit sold it then it's magical, it has some sort of special properties. She didn't mention anything to you?" Kurapika let it fall back to his chest and Leorio couldn't help but think how perfect it looked on Kurapika.

"She mentioned something about the phoenix, that was it."

"Then its magic is probably related to healing or fire. Maybe you should wear this for a while." Kurapika reached up to take it off and Leorio held up his hand.

"Hell no, it's yours, you keep it. I don't care if it'll heal me." It wouldn't feel right wearing it, not after seeing how perfectly it fit Kurapika.

"Fine, stubborn ass," Kurapika said with a sigh. They lapsed into silence as Kurapika studied Leorio. "You're lucky to be alive, you know," Kurapika said quietly. "Kalluto may be young but he's no less deadly than the other Zoldycks."

"I'm lucky he's a sadist and didn't go straight for the kill." Leorio raised his hand and slowly closed it, testing the motion and pain from his stab wound. Yup, still hurt. "Where is the little bastard anyway?"

"He's where you left him." The wind blew harder, causing the house to creak the noise from the rain to increase.

Leorio sat straight up and hissed in pain, but he ignored it to glare at Kurapika. "You mean he's out in the rain?"

Kurapika showed no remorse as he shrugged. "He can't move until you order him to, and I wasn't about to wake you up to go get him."

"You should have, it sounds like it's pouring outside." Leorio winced as he grabbed the blanket with his injured hand to toss it off. Before he could, Kurapika grabbed his wrist.

"Leorio stop. You're in no condition to go out there. Besides, he tried to kill you," Kurapika said, exasperated.

"He's just a kid Kurapika." Leorio tugged against Kurapika's iron grip but he couldn't get his wrist to budge even an inch.

"A highly trained kid whose been through much worse than a bit of rain. Who also tried to kill you." Kurapika let go of his wrist, but Leorio knew he wasn't going to let him up anytime soon.

"Fine," Leorio said, laying back down, "but at least bring him an umbrella."

Kurapika gave him a long look before sighing and getting up. "Alright, but don't move while I'm gone." Kurapika pointed at him before going to get an umbrella.

Leorio should let the brat suffer out in the rain, but he was just a kid and it rubbed him the wrong way to let a kid suffer. Even if that kid was a bastard. A few minutes passed before Kurapika came back in slightly wet and still holding the umbrella.

"He won't take it," Kurapika said, a little miffed as he ran his hand through his damp hair.

Leorio growled and sat up, swinging his legs off the couch before Kurapika could get to him and stop him. "Little bastard gotta make things hard for everyone." Leorio mumbled, attempting to stand but Kurapika's hands on his shoulders prevented him.

"You are not going out there Leorio. Let him be stubborn." Kurapika's hands were gentle but like iron, there'd be no way in hell Leorio could force his way out there. Not like he'd be able to walk well by himself in the first place.

"I'll show you who can be stubborn." Leorio glared at Kurapika, absolutely not giving up on this. The house shook with thunder and the lights flickered again. Leorio raised a brow at Kurapika who managed to hold out for another minute before he sighed.

"Leorio, you're naked."

Leorio looked down and yup, he was indeed naked. That's right, he vaguely remembered being worried about that earlier. Since Kurapika didn't seem to care much, Leorio didn't bother covering himself up. "Go get me pants then."

"Leorio—" Kurapika started, but Leorio cut him off by pointing to the other building.

"Now," Leorio demanded, and then softer because he didn't want to make Kurapika mad, "please?"

Kurapika stared at him for a long moment, obviously debating if arguing would get him anywhere, but eventually his shoulders slumped and he turned to the door. "You're a pain in my ass."

"Thank you." Leorio called as Kurapika disappeared out the door. While his guard was gone, Leorio decided to try and stand up by himself to see if he could. It hurt, but then again he hadn't stopped hurting since he woke up. There was a deep gash on the side of his right calf that throbbed anytime he tried to put weight on that leg, but he could stand. Albeit not for very long, he let himself down on the cushions with a thump that sent pain lancing through his body. When Kurapika came back with some sweatpants, Leorio was curled in on himself and trembling.

"You did something stupid, didn't you?" Kurapika asked, handing the sweatpants over. Leorio tried to snatch them but ended up groaning as he used his injured hand.

"Fuck off and help me put these on." Leaning over wasn't something he wanted to do right now, he was afraid he'd just keep going and wind up on the floor.

"You're going to have to take them right back off to change your bandages," Kurapika said, not moving from where he'd crossed his arms.

Dammit, he was right but he shouldn't say it. "Don't care, there's a little kid sitting alone outside in a storm and I can't rest easy until I help him." Leorio took a deep breath and leaned over, not getting very far before he started shaking with pain. Kurapika gently pushed him back up before he knelt down to help.

"You're an idiot," Kurapika said as he slid the pants on each leg. Standing up, he helped Leorio to his feet and used his tail to pull the pants the rest of the way up. Leorio leaned heavily against Kurapika and took a moment to breathe, letting the pain wash over him. Bless Kurapika, he stood there patiently without rushing him or trying to talk him out of it. When he thought he was ready, Leorio nodded to Kurapika and they made their excruciatingly slow way out of the house.

The rain was coming down in buckets, the wind blowing it in cold sheets. Leorio hesitated before taking a deep breath and heading out into the storm. Thankfully, Kurapika had the foresight to grab the umbrella with his tail, so they weren't getting absolutely soaked, just a bit soaked.

Kalluto was exactly where Leorio had left him, turned back into a kid and sitting prim and proper with his hands folded in his lap. He watched them dispassionately, but he wasn't able to hide the shivers that wracked his body.

"Come on, come inside," Leorio said, having to raise his voice over the sound of the rain. Kalluto didn't move, didn't even acknowledge he'd heard, he only stared at them. Leorio hadn't meant it to be an order, and he guessed that made a difference on if it had to be followed.

"Do you want to stay out here?" Leorio said, limping a little bit closer. Kurapika reluctantly followed along, putting up only a small amount of resistance to make sure Leorio didn't fall. Again Kalluto did nothing.

"Order him to come inside and be done with it," Kurapika said, scowling at the both of them.

"I don't want to order him! Just come inside you brat." Leorio glared at the kid who was resolutely not moving. With a growl, Leorio dragged Kurapika forward, only able to due to the unexpectedness of it. Disentangling himself from Kurapika's hold and ignoring the pain, he leaned down and grabbed Kalluto under the arms and lifted him up to his feet like the kid he was. Leorio then pushed between Kalluto's shoulder blades toward the house. "Go, house."

Kalluto blinked a few times in shock that he'd been handled like that. He gave Leorio an odd look but Leorio shoved him again, and that finally got him moving. Kurapika was quick in getting back to Leorio's side to support him and it was honestly not a moment too soon. Leorio's bad leg gave out under him and he had to rest almost all his weight against Kurapika to stay standing. He regretted losing his temper immediately, but at least the cold rain numbed some of the pain.

Kalluto led them into the house and he stood there dripping in the dining room. Leorio sank down in a chair, not caring about the water getting everywhere. "Kurapika, can you show him where the bathroom is so he can take a hot shower? And Kalluto, I can see you shivering. Stop being stubborn and go take a shower."

Kurapika gestured for Kalluto to follow him and for a moment it looked like the brat wasn't going to, but either he decided that it'd be pointless to argue or he was just cold, he did eventually follow Kurapika up the stairs.

Leorio sighed and then groaned as his pain started coming back in full force. It was like a crescendo of pain, beginning with a little throbs and building up to a full body lightning storm. He could ignore pain when he needed to, but as soon as he slowed back down he always regretted it and boy was he regretting it now. Getting back to the couch might be too much to ask of him at the moment, but sitting up in a dining room chair for too long would find him on the floor.

When Kurapika returned, he frowned at Leorio. Sliding his arm under Leorio's shoulders again, he said in a gentle voice, "Come on, just a little further."

"That's the problem," Leorio groaned, limping his way back into the living room. Kurapika was practically carrying him the whole way, but they made it to the couch without any falls or major problems. Leorio felt worse than he ever had before, lying there trembling and sweating slightly. He was dizzy again and felt pretty nauseous, both signs of blood loss but he figured he wasn't too bad off if he could walk around. He pressed his non-injured hand to his head to try and get the sick feeling to leave him alone. "I think I overdid it."

"Really," Kurapika deadpanned. Leorio flipped him the bird. Kurapika's voice drifted off as he walked away, "Why didn't you order him to come inside?" He asked, genuinely curious.

"He's a kid, not a slave," Leorio said, keeping his hand over his face to block out the too bright lights. He was cold, and he hoped it was just from the rain. "You would've hated it if I'd ordered you around, so would he."

"You still forced him." Kurapika pointed out, dropping a towel onto Leorio's chest. Leorio grunted a thanks and very slowly started patting himself dry. It felt like rubbing sandpaper against himself thanks to those tiny cuts.

"Yeah, but not magic ordered. How does that work anyway? If I've bound a kid I want to know the rules." God, that sounded horrible to say. He had absolute complete control of a ten year old, he felt sick for a completely different reason.

"You don't have to worry too much about it, it's based more off of intentions than words." Kurapika's voice was muffled by the towel as he dried off his hair. "If you don't want to force him to do something then he won't be forced. Any orders like you were giving feel more like a compulsion, but they're easy enough to resist. The only order you ever truly gave me was not to harm anything."

Leorio let out a sigh of relief. He wouldn't have to police his words around the kid so long as he didn't intend to force him to do something. "That's good to know. And sorry about that, you should have just told me about it."

"I didn't know how much I could trust you." Kurapika sat down gingerly next to Leorio's hip, careful of his wings. "Speaking of trust, you know you're going to have to order Kalluto eventually. We can't let him go without rules in place."

"I know. I'll consider that payback for almost killing me." He wouldn't enjoy it though. "That reminds me, have you told Killua his brother is here?"

"Yes, he should be on his way now, and he's bringing a salve that will help you heal much faster." Leorio should have known Kurapika was on top of things. He wouldn't be surprised if Kurapika had already written out a list of orders to give the kid.

"Bless him, I need it. Otherwise I'll be bedridden for a month. Fuck, I'm going to miss classes." School was the furthest thing from his mind right now. Guess almost dying would do that to you.

"I'm sure you can find someone to take notes for you." Kurapika patted his hand with an indulgent smile that turned genuine when Leorio slapped his hand away. The smile turned to laughter as Leorio hissed and cradled his poor injured hand.

Leorio stared as Kurapika laughed, knowing he could listen and watch it all day long and be content. He wanted to reach out and touch him, say something, do something, but before he could the front door opened and a soaking wet Killua barreled into the living room, catching himself on the door so he didn't slide, his bag swinging wildly behind him.

"You look like shit," was the first thing out of his mouth.

"And you are a shit." Leorio struggled to sit up to see him better but in the end gave it up as a lost cause. "Go get dry and you can make fun of me later."

"Did you bring the salve?" Kurapika asked as Killua walked into the room and up to Leorio's couch. Leorio had to stop and stare at him because small arcs of static electricity were jumping around in his hair.

"Yeah, here." Killua tossed it to Kurapika without looking, instead keeping his eyes trained on Leorio. The static sparks got a little faster. "You okay old man?"

Leorio snorted, "Is that how you show worry? Electricity in your hair?"

The moment he said it Killua's hands went straight to his hair to smooth it down, the sparks dancing around his fingers with tiny, barely audible crackles. "No, I've been flying in a storm. I'm just super charged right now." His surly face spoke otherwise and Leorio couldn't help but grin at him. Killua rolled his eyes and headed toward the bathroom to grab a towel.

Kurapika followed him to get the bandages and Leorio got to sit back and let someone else take care of the medical attention for once. The salve was heavenly, cool and numbing like stepping into a shaded pool from the burning sun. It didn't kill the pain, but it sure made it more bearable. Killua watched with a towel around his shoulders, his hair fluffy and occasionally crackling when Kurapika unwrapped a particularly bad gash.

"Where's Kalluto?" Killua eventually asked, eyes trained on the wound in Leorio's side where a feather had gone straight through him.

"Your brat of a brother is upstairs taking a shower," Leorio said, sighing as the pain was eased by the salve. He was lucky that feather hadn't pierced anything important, or more likely he was lucky the kid hadn't aimed at anything important.

Killua nodded and headed upstairs, dragging his bag along behind him. Leorio wondered how close the two brothers were. Close enough for Kalluto to want to bring Killua home at least. How would their reunion go after Kalluto tried to kill Leorio? Leorio was torn between wanting Killua to go easy on the kid and Killua to tear him a new one.

While the kids were upstairs, Kurapika moved on to Leorio's legs, having to take the pants off and cover him with a blanket instead. Leorio would very much rather not flash the kids, but he had to admit that seeing Killua's face would be priceless.

Once his pants were back on, he had a thought. "Did Killua bring Kalluto some clothes? Because I don't think any of ours are going to fit."

Kurapika huffed a laugh. "If he didn't I suppose he could wear one of your shirts as a dress."

"Admittedly that would be cute as hell, but also creepy." He didn't want to remind the kid or himself how much control he had over him.

It didn't take much longer for the two brothers to come down, Killua looking a bit miffed and Kalluto as expressionless as ever. Speaking of cute, Kalluto was dressed in Killua's clothes which were a bit too big for him. Seeing such a prim little kid in an oversized t-shirt and shorts was darling.

"He is completely not sorry for what he did," Killua announced, flopping into the recliner. Kalluto stood next to the chair, his eyes trained on Leorio and yeah, that kid was not the least bit remorseful.

"Of course not, I'm just an obstacle right? Didn't expect this obstacle to fight back did you?" Leorio crossed his arms, glaring at Kalluto. Sure he was going to go easy on the kid, but that didn't mean he wasn't pissed about the attempted murder.

"You got very lucky," Kalluto said. Killua gave a small whack to Kalluto's shoulder.

"You know he beat you fair and square, it's your fault for toying with him. You have to get out of that bad habit." Bad habit, that was one way of saying Kalluto was sadistic.

"What I want to know is if Killua was the only reason you came here," Kurapika said, from his perch behind Leorio on the couch armrest.

"Are you scared? They could be on their way right now." Kalluto finally turned those pink eyes away from Leorio, focusing all his attention on Kurapika.

"Who could be on their way?" Leorio asked, sitting up straighter before deciding it wasn't worth the effort. Killua also perked up. Shit, if Killua had older siblings coming then they'd be screwed.

"The troupe," Kurapika said, narrowing his eyes at Kalluto.

It took a moment for the meaning of that to sink in, but as soon as it did Leorio yelped, "What?!" Killua echoed him, eyes wide and whipping his head around to stare at Kalluto.

"He's part of the troupe, joined just this year," Kurapika explained, but Killua didn't wait for him to finish before he was leaning over the side of his chair and glaring at Kalluto.

"You joined the spiders? Are you insane?! Please tell me you didn't do that because of me, I will kick your ass so hard," Killua hissed.

Kalluto merely stared back. "I joined to get stronger." 

"That doesn't matter right now, is the troupe coming or not?" Kurapika interrupted, his voice holding a hint of anger. How must he be feeling right now? There was a member of the group he hated so much standing right across from him, but that member was also a kid and a friend's younger brother. It was a shitty situation all around.

Kalluto didn't say a word, didn't even smile. Leorio leaned his head back and groaned, not liking what he was going to have to do. "Answer. And honestly too." He ordered, lacing his words with the intent that they be obeyed.

Kalluto's eyes narrowed. "No."

"Do they know you're here?" Kurapika asked, leaning forward.

"No."

"What about our family?" Killua asked.

"They don't know either," Kalluto said. Killua let out a breath and visibly relaxed. It seemed Leorio had been right to worry about Killua's older family members.

"Where is the troupe now?" Kurapika asked.

Kalluto hesitated, obviously struggling to say something, but in the end the compulsion to tell the truth won out. "They're all in north America, mostly the eastern coast. Are you going to go after them? I can save you the trouble by killing you now."

Kurapika growled and Leorio quieted him by patting his foot. "No one's killing anyone, least of all you." Leorio pointed at Kalluto. "I think we can all agree that you need to stay the hell away from the troupe."

"No," Kurapika said.

Both Leorio and Killua turned to look at Kurapika. He shook his head, dispelling their questions. "If he disappears without a trace they'll figure it was me and they'll come looking. I assume they at least knew what direction you went off in." Kalluto smiled, all the answer that Kurapika needed. "So we need him to be able to contact the troupe, maybe even rejoin them."

"I don't want my brother anywhere near them, especially if they find out he's been bound by a friend of yours," Killua said, leaning forward in his chair. "He doesn't need to rejoin them, just contact them right?"

"I told them I'd come back once I finished my business here," Kalluto said helpfully. Judging by how bright his eyes were he was enjoying this.

"Then that's settled." Kurapika leaned back and crossed his arms with a nod.

"Nothing's settled!" Killua cried, throwing his hands up. "If he goes back and they find out he's compromised they'll kill him!"

"He knew the risks when he joined them."

Killua jumped up, hands curling into fists and tiny arcs of static dancing in his hair. "He's my brother, Kurapika. I'm not letting him walk to his death."

Kalluto laughed, bringing everyone's attention to him. "I'm not the one you have to worry about, if the old man doesn't word his orders carefully enough he'll be sending a messenger to his reapers."

"He's right Killua," Kurapika said, "he knows what he's doing and the risks involved. We don't send him back, we die. You can help us come up with the orders to cover every loophole so he doesn't get found out."

Killua growled, an actual animalistic growl that didn't belong in a child's throat, but he forced himself to relax. "Fine. But I get final say so on everything."

"Of course you do, so does Kalluto within reason," Leorio said. He could see Kurapika about to say something so he cut him off. "Yes he does. This is his life we're fucking with right now, I'm not ordering him to do something that'll end up hurting him because we didn't know what he goes through. He's not able to lie to us right now so I don't see a problem with getting his input."

Killua gave Leorio a grateful smile and Kalluto stared at him, his big eyes unreadable as ever. Leorio honestly expected Kurapika to argue, but in the end he simply sighed.

"Alright, you have a point. Let's get some sleep and then get to work."

Leorio lay back on the couch, not caring if it was still damp, not caring that it wasn't quite long enough for him, he was going to sleep right there because walking to his bedroom was not something he wanted to do.

*

In the morning, after Leorio had his bandages changed and while they were all eating breakfast, the four of them poured over a list of orders, trying to find the best combination that would ensure their safety and keep the troupe off of their backs. Kurapika was more worried about the troupe while Killua was understandably more worried about his brother. It caused quite a few arguments that ended only when Leorio or Kalluto would chime in with a solution.

Kalluto, while not enjoying the process, didn't seem to be as worried as Leorio would have guessed. When someone would suggest an order, Kalluto would helpfully tell them all the ways he'd get around it. Leorio hadn't even had to ask him to, he volunteered the information. Of course it was most likely to get their guard down and he'd keep some of the exploits to himself, but Kurapika made sure to grill him each time until they knew for sure Kalluto couldn't find a loophole.

Hours went by, breakfast turned to lunch, and after their takeout had grown cold they seemed to finally settle on a list of orders that got the job done as best it could. It had been tricky to strike the right balance of reigning Kalluto in and allowing him his freedom, but Leorio felt good about what they had. He still didn't enjoy reading the list and forcing his will on the kid, though he acted like he did. Kurapika and Killua probably saw right through him, but Kalluto didn't know any better. Maybe that'd make him think twice about pissing Leorio off again in the future.

As he watched Kalluto fly away, he wondered if they were doing the right thing. Were they sending a child to his death? Then again that child did decide to play with the gang of murderers in the first place. What kind of homelife did the Zoldycks have to make the troupe seem like a good idea? Leorio decided to ask Killua and get the answer out of him one way or another. Those kids needed a better home.


End file.
